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BW:IDGE 







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Book S^b 



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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



SCIENTIFIC 
AUCTION BRIDGE 



A CLEAR EXPOSITION OF THE GAME 

TO AID BOTH THE BEGINNER AND 

THE EXPERIENCED PLAYER, WITH 

EXPLICIT AND EASY RULES FOR 

BIDDING AND PLAYING 



BY 

E. V. SHEPARD 




HARPERS BROTHERS PUBLISHERS 

NEW YORK AND LONDON 

MCMXIII 



<^ 



^%.i 



COPYRIGHT. 1913. BY E. V. SHEPARD 

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STA TES OF AMERICA 

PUBLISHED MARCH. 1913 



©CI.A34 3 538 
^"0 / 



CONTENTS 



PAGE 

General Remarks i 

Laws of Auction Bridge 3 

Etiquette of Auction Bridge . 24 

First Steps 26 

Side Features 28 

General Characteristics of Auction Bridge ... 36 

Winning Cards 41 

Attacking Hands 48 

Scientific Bidding 57 

Informatory Bids 66 

Business Bids 75 

Protective Bids 84 

Supporting Bids 90 

Interpreting Bids 96 

Passing iii 

Doubling and Redoubling 114 

Score and Honor Values 125 

Lead to Partner's Strength 129 

Trump Leads , . 136 

No-Trump Leads 147 

Conventional Plays 162 

Eldest Hand 180 

Pone 196 

Declarer 215 

Card Probabilities 239 



SCIENTIFIC 
AUCTION BRIDGE 



GENERAL REMARKS 

It is quite unnecessary to know anything of either 
Whist or Bridge to readily learn to play a good game of 
Auction Bridge. The three games have much in com- 
mon, but som_e of the principles involved are so radically 
different that a beginner who knows nothing of the 
older game can about as readily learn what Whist and 
Bridge players really know of the new game as the 
latter players can unlearn what does not apply to it. 

The closer a player follows the probabilities on sizing 
up his hand, bidding, doubling, redoubling, leading, and 
so on, the bigger his score will average. This is the 
first work on Auction Bridge to enter thoroughly into 
the mathematical probabilities of the game. Minor 
changes have resulted in the rules for the play of the 
cards to give their holder the benefit of increased 
chances to win. The great changes from methods 
commonly used by the average player come in the 
bidding system which is based upon mathematical facts. 

A player should start his game with all possible 
chances in his favor. As the game progresses proba- 
bilities give place to disclosures made by others' bids, 
doubles, redoubles, leads, ruffs, discards, signals, cards 
played, suits not opened, even by mannerisms of the 

I 



players. Disclosures confirm probabilities or show 
unusual conditions to exist, while probabilities all 
through the game steady the player who is versed in 
them and tend to prevent false disclosures from fooling 
him. 

For the benefit of the reader desiring only the main 
features of the game these have been arranged briefly 
and simply at the beginning of each chapter under the 
heading "Chief Essentials." Further particulars will 
be found in each case headed "Details." 

While the system of play outlined here is based upon 
probabilities, the reader need not bother his head with 
figures, as simple rules have been evolved from them 
which will enable him to cope with mathematically 
inclined players. 



LAWS AND ETIQUETTE OF 

AUCTION BRIDGE 

ADOPTED SEPTEMBER, 1912 

COPYRIGHTED BY 

THE WHIST CLUB, NEW YORK 



REPRINTED HERE 
BY SPECIAL PERMISSION 



CONTENTS 

SECTION 

The Rubber i 

Scoring 2 to 13 

Cutting 14 to 16 

Forming Tables 17 to 20 

Cutting Out 21 

Right of Entry 22 to 27 

Shuffling 28 to 30 

The Deal 31 to 36 

A New Deal 37 to 41 

Declaring Trumps 42 to 52 

Doubling, Redoubling, Etc S3 to 58 

Dummy 59 to 64 

Cards Exposed Before Play 65 to 66 

Cards Exposed During Play 67 to 75 

Leads out of Turn 76 to 79 

Cards Played in Error 80 to 82 

The Revoke 83 to 89 

General Rules 90 to 94 

New Cards 95 to 96 

Bystanders 97 

Etiquette Page 24 



THE LAWS 

OF 

AUCTION BRIDGE 



THE RUBBER 

1. The partners first winning two games win the 
rubber. If the first two games decide the rubber, a 
third is not played. 

SCORING 

2. A game consists of thirty points obtained by 
tricks alone, exclusive of any points counted for honors, 
chicane, slam, little slam, bonus, or under-tricks. 

3. Every deal is played out, and any points in excess 
of the thirty necessary for the game are counted. 

4. When the declarer wins the number of tricks bid, 
each one above six counts toward the game: two 
points when spades are trumps, six when clubs are 
trumps, seven when diamonds are trumps, eight when 
hearts are trumps, nine when royal spades are trumps, 
and ten when there are no trumps. 

5. Honors are ace, king, queen, knave, and ten of 
the trump suit; or the aces when no trump is declared. 

6. Honors are credited in the honor column to the 
original holders, being valued as follows : 

7 





When a Trump is Declared. 




3 honors held between partners equal value of 2 tricks. 


4 


" " " " " 


4 " 


5 " 


H <( <( << <( 


5 " 


4 " 
4 


" in I hand " " 

( 5th in ) 
" " I " A partner's ]■ " " 

f hand ) 


8 " 

9 " 


5 " 


" " I " " 


lO " 




When no Trump is Declared. 




3 


aces held between partners count 


30 


4 


11 l( <l (( u 


40 


4 


" " in one hand 


100 



7. Slam is made when seven by cards is scored by 
either side, independently of tricks taken as penalty 
for the revoke; it adds forty points to the honor count. -^ 

8. Little slam is made when six by cards is similerly 
scored; it adds twenty points to the honor count. -^ 

9. Chicane (one hand void of trumps) is equal in 
value to simple honors — i. e., if the partners, one of 
whom has chicane, score honors, it adds the value of 
three honors to their honor score; if the adversaries 
score honors it deducts that value from theirs. Double 
chicane (both hands void of trumps) is equal in value 
to four honors, and that value must be deducted from 
the honor score of the adversaries. 



* Law 84 prohibits the revoking side from scoring slam or 
little slam. 

8 



10. The value of honors, slam, little slam, or chicane 
is not affected by doubling or redoubling. 

1 1 . At the conclusion of a rubber the trick and honor 
scores of each side are added, and two hundred and 
fifty points added to the score of the winners. The 
difference between the completed scores is the number 
of points of the rubber. 

12. A proven error in the honor score may be cor- 
rected at an}^ time before the score of the rubber has 
been made up and agreed upon. 

13. A proven error in the trick score may be cor- 
rected prior to the conclusion of the game in which it 
occurred. Such game shall not be considered con- 
cluded until a declaration has been made in the follow- 
ing game, or if it be the final game of the rubber, un- 
til the score has been made up and agreed upon. 

CUTTING 

14. In cutting, the ace is the lowest card; as between 
cards of otherwise equal value, the lowest is the heart, 
next the diamond, next the club, and highest the spade. 

15. Every player must cut from the same pack. 

16. Should a player expose more than one card, the 
highest is his cut. 

FORMING TABLES 

17. The prior right of playing is with those first in 
the room. If there are more than four candidates of 
equal standing, the privilege of playing is decided by 
cutting. The four who cut the lowest cards play first. 

18. After the table is formed the players cut to de- 
cide upon partners, the two lower playing against the 
two higher. The lowest is the dealer, who has choice 
of cards and seats, and who, having made his selection, 
must abide by it. 

9 



ig. Six players constitute a complete table. 

20. The right to succeed any player who may retire 
is acquired by announcing the desire to do so, and such 
announcement shall constitute a prior right to the first 
vacancy. 

CUTTING OUT 

21. If, at the end of a rubber, admission is claimed 
by one or two candidates, the player or players having 
played the greatest number of consecutive rubbers 
shall withdraw; but when all have played the same 
nimiber they must cut to decide upon the outgoers; 
the highest are out/ 

RIGHT OF ENTRY 

2 2. A candidate desiring to enter a table must de- 
clare his intention before any player at the table cuts 
a card, whether for the purpose of beginning a new rub- 
ber or of cutting out. 

23. In the formation of new tables candidates who 
have not played at any existing table have the prior 
right of entry. Others decide their right to admission 
by cutting. 

24. When one or more players belonging to an exist- 
ing table aid in making up a new one he or they shall 
be the last to cut out. 

25. A player who cuts into one table, while belonging 
to another, forfeits his prior right of re-entry into the 
latter, unless he has helped to form a new table. In 
this event he may signify his intention of returning 
to his original table when his place at the new one can 
be filled. 

26. Should any player leave a table during the prog- 
ress of a rubber, he may, with the consent of the three 

^ See Law 14 as to value of cards in cutting. 
10 



others, appoint a substitute to play during his absence; 
but such appointment shall become void upon the con- 
clusion of the rubber, and shall not in any way affect 
the substitute's rights. 

27. If any player break up a table the others have a 
prior right elsewhere. 

SHUFFLING 

28. The pack must not be shuffled below the table nor 
so that the face of any card may be seen. 

29. The dealer's partner must collect the cards from 
the preceding deal and has the right to shuffle first. 
Each player has the right to shuffle subsequently. The 
dealer has the right to shuffle last; but, should a card 
or cards be seen during his shuffling, or while giving the 
pack to be cut, he must reshuffle. 

30. After shuffling, the cards properly collected must 
be placed face downward to the left of the next dealer, 
where they must remain untouched until the play with 
the other pack is finished. 

THE DEAL 

31. Each player deals in his turn; the order of 
dealing is to the left. 

32. The player on the dealer's right cuts the pack, 
and in dividing it he must leave not fewer than four 
cards in each packet; if in cutting or in replacing one 
of the two packets a card is exposed, or if there is any 
confusion or doubt as to the exact place in which the 
pack was divided, there must be a fresh cut. 

33. When the player whose duty it is to cut has once 
separated the pack, he can neither reshuffle nor recut, 
except as provided in Law 32. 

34. Should the dealer shuffle the cards after the cut, 
the pack must be cut again. 

II 



35- The fifty-two cards shall be dealt face downward. 
The deal is not completed until the last card has been 
dealt. 

36. In the event of a misdeal the cards must be dealt 
again by the same player. 

A NEW DEAL 

37. There must be a new deal — 

(a) If the cards are not dealt into four packets, one at a 

time and in regular rotation, beginning at the 
dealer's left. 

(b) If, during a deal or during the play, the pack is proven 

incorrect or imperfect. 

(c) If any card is faced in the pack or is exposed during 

the deal on, above or below the table. 

(d) If any player has dealt to him a greater number of 

cards than thirteen, whether discovered before or 
during the play. 

(e) If the dealer deal two cards at once and then deal a 

third before correcting the error. 
(/) If the dealer omit to have the pack cut and either 

adversary calls attention to the fact prior to the 

completion of the deal and before either adversary 

has looked at any of his cards, 
(g) If the last card does not come in its regular order to 

the dealer. 

38. Should three players have their right number of 
cards, the fourth, less, and not discover such deficiency 
until he has played, the deal stands; he, not being 
dummy, is answerable for any established revoke he 
may have made as if the missing card or cards had 
been in his hand. Any player may search the other 
pack for it or them. 

39. If, during the play, a pack be proven incorrect, 
such proof renders the current deal void, but does not 

12 



affect any prior score. [See Law 37 (b).] If during or 
at the conclusion of the play one player be found to 
hold more than the proper niimber of cards and another 
have an equal number less, the deal is void. 

40. A player dealing out of turn or with the adver- 
saries' cards may be corrected before the last card is 
dealt, otherwise the deal must stand, and the game 
proceed as if the deal had been correct, the player to 
his left dealing the next hand. A player who has looked 
at any of his cards may not correct such deal, nor may 
his partner. 

41. A player can neither cut, shuffle, nor deal for his 
partner without the permission of his adversaries. 

DECLARING TRUMPS 

42. The dealer, having examined his hand, must de- 
clare to win at least one odd trick, either with a declared 
suit or at "no trumps." 

43. After the dealer has made his declaration, each 
player in turn, commencing with the player on the 
dealer's left, has the right to pass, to make a higher 
declaration, to double the last declaration made, or 
to redouble a declaration which has been doubled, 
subject to the provisions of Law 54. 

44. A declaration of a greater number of tricks in 
a suit of lower value, which equals the last declaration 
in value of points, shall be considered a higher declara- 
tion — e. g., a declaration of "Three Spades" is a higher 
declaration than "One Club." 

45. A player in his turn may overbid the previous 
adverse declaration any number of times, and may 
also overbid his partner, but he cannot overbid his own 
declaration which has been passed by the three others. 

46. The player who makes the final declaration shall 
play the combined hands of himself and his partner 

13 



(the latter becoming dummy), unless the winning suit 
was first bid by the partner, in which case he, no matter 
what bids have intervened, shall play the hand. 

47. When the player of the two hands (hereinafter 
termed *'the declarer") wins at least as many tricks 
as he declared, he scores the full value of the tricks won 
(see Laws 4 and 6). When he fails, neither the de- 
clarer nor his adversaries score anything toward the 
game, but his adversaries score in the honor coltimn 
fifty points for each under- trick — i. e., each trick short 
of the number declared ; or, if the declaration has been 
doubled, or redoubled, one hundred or two hundred 
respectively for each such trick. 

48. The loss on the original declaration by the dealer 
of "One Spade" is limited to one hundred points 
whether doubled or not, unless redoubled. Honors are 
scored as held. 

,49. If a player make a declaration (other than pass- 
ing) out of turn, either adversary may demand a new 
deal, or may allow the declaration so made to stand, 
in which case the bidding shall continue as if the dec- 
laration had been in order. -^ 

50. If a player make an insufficient or impossible 
declaration, either adversary may demand that it be 
penalized, provided such demand be made before an 
adversary has passed, doubled, or declared. In case 
of an insufhcient declaration the penalty is that the 
declarer must make his bid sufficient and his partner 
is debarred from making any further declaration unless 
an adversary subsequently bids or doubles. In case 
of an impossible declaration the penalty is that the 

1 The Whist Club, Case i, decision in brief is: There does not 
seem to be any sound reason for preventing partners entitled to 
a penalty or choice of penalties from consulting, and as the laws 
at present stand, there is unquestionably nothing prohibiting it. 

14 



declarer is considered to have bid to take all the tricks 
and his partner cannot further declare unless an ad- 
versary subsequently bids or doubles. Either adver- 
sary, instead of accepting the impossible declaration, 
may demand a new deal or may treat his own or his 
partner's last previous declaration as final. 

51. If, after the final declaration has been made, 
an adversary of the declarer give his partner any infor- 
mation as to any previous declaration, whether made 
by himself or an adversary, the declarer may call a 
lead from the adversary whose turn next it is to lead; 
but a player is entitled to inquire, at any time during 
the play of the hand, what was the final declaration. 

52. A declaration legitimately made cannot be 
altered after the next player has passed, declared, or 
doubled. Prior to such action by the next player, a 
declaration inadvertently made may be corrected. 

DOUBLING AND REDOUBLING 

53. The effect of doubling and redoubling is that the 
value of each trick over six is doubled or quadrupled, 
as provided in Law 4; but it does not alter the value 
of a declaration — e. g., a declaration of ''Three Clubs" 
is higher than "Two Royal Spades" even if the "Royal 
Spade" declaration has been doubled. 

54. Any declaration can be doubled and redoubled 
once, but not more; a player cannot double his part- 
ner's declaration, nor redouble his partner's double, 
but he may redouble a declaration of his partner which 
has been doubled by an adversary. 

55. The act of doubling or redoubling reopens the 
bidding. When a declaration has been doubled or re- 
doubled, any player, including the declarer or his part- 
ner, can in his proper turn make a further declaration 
of higher value. 

15 



56. When a player whose declaration has been 
doubled wins the declared number of tricks, he scores 
a bonus of fifty points in the honor column, and a 
further fifty points for each additional trick. If he 
or his partner has redoubled, the bonus is doubled. 

57. If a player double out of turn, either adversary 
may demand a new deal. 

58. When the final declaration has been made the 
play shall begin, and the player on the left of the de- 
clarer shall lead. 

DUMMY 

59. As soon as the player to the left of the declarer 
has led, the declarer's partner shall place his cards face 
upward on the table, and the duty of playing the cards 
from that hand shall devolve upon the declarer. 

60. Before placing his cards upon the table the de- 
clarer's partner has all the rights of a player, but after 
so doing takes no part whatever in the play, except 
that he has the right : 

(a) To ask the declarer whether he has any of a suit in 

which he has renounced; 

(b) To call the declarer's attention to the fact that too 

many or too few cards have been played to a trick; 

(c) To correct the claim of either adversary to a penalty 

to which the latter is not entitled; 

(d) To call attention to the fact that a trick has been 

erroneously taken by either side; 

(e) To participate in the discussion of any disputed ques- 

tion of fact after it has arisen between the declarer 
and either adversary; 
(/) To correct an erroneous score. 

61. Should the declarer's partner call attention to 
any other incident of the play in consequence of which 
any penalty might have been exacted, the declarer is 
precluded from exacting such penalty. 

16 



62. If the declarer's partner, by touching a card or 
otherwise, suggest the play of a card from dummy, 
either adversary may call upon the declarer to play or 
not play the card suggested. 

63 . Dummy is not liable to the penalty for a revoke ; 
if he revoke and the error be not discovered until the 
trick is turned and quitted, whether by the rightful 
winners or not, the trick must stand. 

64. A card from the declarer's own hand is not 
played until actually quitted; but should he name or 
touch a card in the dummy, such card is considered 
as played unless he, in touching the card, say, *'I ar- 
range," or words to that effect. If he simultaneously 
touch two or more such cards, he may elect which one 
to play. 

CARDS EXPOSED BEFORE PLAY 

65. If, after the cards have been dealt, and before 
the trump declaration has been finally determined, any 
player lead or expose a card, the partner of the offend- 
ing player may not make any further bid or double 
during that hand, and the card is subject to call. When 
the partner of the offending player is the original leader, 
the declarer may prohibit the suit of the exposed card 
being the initial lead. 

66. If, after the final declaration has been made and 
before a card is led, the partner of the leader to the first 
trick expose a card, the declarer may, in addition to 
calling the card, prohibit the lead of the suit of the 
exposed card; should the rightful leader expose a card 
it is subject to call. 

CARDS EXPOSED DURING PLAY 

67. All cards exposed after the original lead by the 
declarer's adversaries are liable to be called, and such 
cards must be left face upward on the table. 

17 



68. The following are exposed cards : 

ist. Two or more cards played at once. 

2d. Any card dropped with its face upward on the table, 

even though snatched up so quickly that it cannot 

be named. 
3d. Any card so held by a player that his partner sees 

any portion of its face. 
4th. Any card mentioned by either adversary as being 

held, by him or his partner. 

69. A card dropped on the floor or elsewhere below 
the table or so held that an adversary but not the 
partner sees it, is not an exposed card. 

70. If two or more cards are played at once by either 
of the declarer's adversaries, the declarer shall have the 
right to call any one of such cards to the current trick, 
and the other card or cards are exposed. 

71. If, without waiting for his partner to play, 
either of the declarer's adversaries play or lead a win- 
ning card, as against the declarer and dummy, and con- 
tinue (without waiting for his partner to play) to lead 
several such cards, the declarer may demand that the 
partner of the player in fault win, if he can, the first or 
any other of these tricks, and the other cards thus im- 
properly played are exposed cards. 

72. If either or both of the declarer's adversaries 
throw his or their cards on the table face upward, such 
cards are exposed and are liable to be called; but if 
either adversary retain his hand he cannot be forced 
to abandon it. Cards exposed by the declarer are not 
liable to be called. If the declarer say, "I have the 
rest," or any other words indicating that the remaining 
tricks or any number thereof are his, he may be re- 
quired to place his cards face upward on the table. 

18 



His adversaries are not liable to have any of their 
cards called shovild they thereupon expose them. 

73. If a player who has rendered himself liable to 
have the highest or lowest of a suit called (Laws 80, 
86, and 92) fail to play as directed, or if, when called on 
to lead one suit, he lead another, having in his hand 
one or more cards of the suit demanded (Laws 76 and 
93), or if, called upon to win or lose a trick, fail to do 
so when he can (Laws 71, 80, and 92), or if, when called 
upon not to play a suit, fail to play as directed (Laws 65 
and 66) , he is liable to the penalty for revoke, unless such 
play be corrected before the trick is turned and quitted. 

74. A player cannot be compelled to play a card 
which would oblige him to revoke. 

75. The call of an exposed card may be repeated 
until such card has been played. 

LEADS OUT OF TURN 

76. If gither of the declarer's adversaries lead out 
of turn the declarer may either treat the card so led 
as an exposed card or may call a suit as soon as it is 
the turn of either adversary to lead. 

77. If the declarer lead out of turn, either from his 
own hand or from dummy, he incurs no penalty; but 
he may not rectify the error after the second hand has 
played. 

78. If any player lead out of turn and the three others 
follow, the trick is complete and the error cannot be 
rectified; but if only the second, or second and third 
play to the false lead, their cards may be taken back; 
there is no penalty against any except the original 
offender, who, if he be one of the declarer's adversaries, 
may be penalized as provided in Law 76. 

79. If a player called on to lead a suit has none of it, 
the penalty is paid. 

3 19 



CARDS PLAYED IN ERROR 

80. Should the fourth hand, not being dummy or 
declarer, play before the second, the latter may be 
called upon to play his highest or lowest card of the 
suit played, or to win or lose the trick. 

81. If any one, not being dummy, omit playing to a 
trick and such error is not corrected until he has played 
to the next, the adversaries or either of them may claim 
a new deal; should either decide that the deal is to 
stand, the surplus card at the end of the hand is con- 
sidered to have been played to the imperfect trick, but 
does not constitute a revoke therein. 

82. When any one except dummy plays two or 
more cards to the same trick and the mistake is not 
corrected, he is answerable for any consequent revokes 
he may have made. When during the play the error 
is detected, the tricks may be counted face downward, 
to see if any contain more than four cards ; should this 
be the case, the trick which contains a surplus card or 
cards may be examined and the card or carets restored 
to the original holder, who (not being dtimmy) shall be 
liable for any revoke he may meanwhile have made. 

THE REVOKE 1 

83. A revoke occurs when a player other than 
dummy, holding one or more cards of the suit led, 
plays a card of a different suit. It becomes an estab- 
lished revoke if the trick in which it occurs is turned 
and quitted by the rightful winners {i. e., the hand re- 
moved from the trick after it has been turned face 
downward on the table) ; or if either the revoking player 
or his partner, whether in turn or otherwise, lead or 
play to the following trick. 

1 See Law 73. 
20 



84- The penalty for each estabUshed revoke is: 

(a) When the declarer revokes, his adversaries add 150 

points to their score in the honor coluinn, in addi- 
tion to any penalty which he may have incurred 
for not making good his declaration. 

(b) If either of the adversaries revoke, the declarer may 

either add 150 points to his score in the honor 
column, or may take three tricks from his oppo- 
nents and add them to his own. Such tricks may 
assist the declarer to make good his declaration, 
but shall not entitle him to score any bonus in 
the honor column, in the case of the declaration 
having been doubled or redoubled. 

(c) When more than one revoke is made by the same 

side during the play of the hand the penalty for 
each revoke after the first shall be 100 points in 
the honor column. 

A revoking side cannot score, except for honors or 
chicane. 

85. A player may ask his partner if he has a card of 
the suit which he has renounced; shoidd the question 
be asked before the trick is turned and quitted, sub- 
sequent turning and quitting does not establish a re- 
voke, and the error may be corrected unless the ques- 
tion is answered in the negative, or unless the revoking 
player or his partner has led or played to the following 
trick. 

86. If a player correct his mistake in time to save a 
revoke, any player or players who have followed him 
may withdraw their cards and substitute others, and 
the cards so withdrawn are not exposed. If the player 
in fault is one of the declarer's adversaries, the card 
played in error is exposed and the declarer may call it 
whenever he pleases; or he may require the offender 
to play his highest or lowest card of the suit to the 

21 



trick, but this penalty cannot be exacted from the 
declarer. 

87. At the end of a hand the claimants of a revoke 
may search all the tricks. If the cards have been 
mixed the claim may be urged and proved if possible; 
but no proof is necessary and the claim is established 
if, after it has been made, the accused player or his 
partner mix the cards before they have been sufficiently 
examined by the adversaries. 

SS. A revoke must be claimed before the cards have 
been cut for the following deal. 

89. Should both sides revoke, the only score permitted 
shall be for honors in trumps or chicane. If one side 
revoke more than once, the penalty of 100 points for 
each extra revoke shall then be scored by the other 

side. 

GENERAL RULES 

90. Once a trick is complete, turned and quitted, it 
must not be looked at (except under Law 82) until the 
end of the hand. 

91. Any player during the play of a trick or after 
the four cards are played, and before they are touched 
for the purpose of gathering them together, may de- 
mand that the cards be placed before their respective 
players. 

92. If either of the declarer's adversaries, prior to 
his partner playing, call attention to the trick, either 
by saying it is his, or without being requested so to do, 
by naming his card or drawing it toward him, the de- 
clarer may require such partner to play his highest or 
lowest card of the suit led, or to win or lose the trick. 

93. Either of the declarer's adversaries may call his 
partner's attention to the fact that he is about to play 
or lead out of turn; but if, during the play of a hand, 
he make any unauthorized reference to any incident 



of the play, or of any bid previously made, the de- 
clarer may call a suit from the adversary whose turn 
it is next to lead. 

94. In all cases where a penalty has been incurred 
the offender is bound to give reasonable time for the 
decision of his adversaries. 

NEW CARDS 

95. Unless a pack is imperfect, no player shall have 
the right to call for one new pack. If fresh cards are 
demanded, two packs must be furnished. If they are 
produced during a rubber, the adversaries shall have 
the choice of the new cards. If it is the beginning of 
a new rubber, the dealer, whether he or one of his ad- 
versaries is the party calling for the new cards, shall 
have the choice. New cards must be called for before 
the pack is cut for a new deal. 

96. A card or cards torn or marked must be replaced 
by agreement or new cards furnished. 

BYSTANDERS 

97. While a bystander, by agreement among the 
players, may decide any question, he should not say 
anything unless appealed to; and if he make any re- 
mark which calls attention to an oversight affecting the 
score, or to the exaction of a penalty, he is liable to be 
called upon by the players to pay the stakes (not 
extras) lost. 



ETIQUETTE OF AUCTION BRIDGE 

In Auction Bridge slight intimations convey much 
information. A code is compiled for the purpose of 
succinctly stating laws and for fixing penalties for an 
offense. To offend against etiquette is far more serious 
than to offend against a law; for, while in the latter 
case the offender is subject to the prescribed penalties, 
in the former his adversaries have no redress. 

1. Declarations should be made in a simple manner, 
thus: "One Heart," "One No Trump," or "I pass," or 
"I double"; they should be made orally, and not by 
gesture. 

2. Aside from his legitimate declaration, a player 
should not give any indication by word or gesture as 
to the nature of his hand, or as to his pleasure or dis- 
pleasure at a play, a bid, or a double. 

3. If a player demand that the cards be placed, he 
should do so for his own information, and not to call 
his partner's attention to any card or play. 

4. No player, other than the declarer, should lead 
until the preceding trick is turned and quitted; nor, 
after having led a winning card, should he draw an- 
other from his hand before his partner has played to 
the current trick. 

5. A player should not play a card with such em- 
phasis as to draw attention to it. Nor should he de- 

24 



tach one card from his hand and subsequently play 
another. 

6. A player should not purposely incur a penalty 
because he is willing to pay it, nor should he make a 
second revoke to conceal a first. 

7. Players should avoid discussion and refrain from 
talking during the play, as it may be annojdng to 
players at the table or to those at other tables in the 
room. 

8. The dummy should not leave his seat for the pur- 
pose of watching his partner's play, neither should he 
call attention to the score nor to any card or cards that 
he or the other players hold, nor to any bid pre\dously 
made. 

9. If a player say "I have the rest," or any words 
indicating the remaining tricks are his, and one or both 
of the other players should expose his or their cards, 
or request him to play out the hand, he should not al- 
low any information so obtained to influence his play 
nor take any finesse not announced by him at the time 
of making such claim, unless it had been previously 
proven to be a winner. 

10. If a player concede in error one or more tricks, 
the concession should stand. 

1 1 . A player having been cut out of one table should 
not seek admission into another, unless willing to cut 
for the privilege of entry. 

12. No player should look at any of his cards until 
the deal is completed. 



FIRST STEPS 

Four players are required to play the game of 
Auction Bridge. Those sitting opposite each other are 
partners and keep their tricks in common. 

Partners can be selected before the game and can be 
retained, or one player can sit still and two others can 
change places after each rubber. If you play with 
each other person in turn, one rubber with each, it is 
known as pivoting or rotating. The ordinary way 
to choose partners is b}^ cutting, as provided in the 
Laws of Auction Bridge. 

The dealer shuffles his cards and passes them to the 
player on his right to cut. In cutting always place the 
cards you remove toward the dealer. You have no 
right to join the two packets after separating them. 
This must be done by the dealer, who then distributes 
the fifty-two cards of the pack, one at a time, to the 
players in regular rotation, commencing at his left. 
The bidding proceeds in the same way from left to right, 
like the movement of the hands of a clock. The player 
to whom the first card is dealt will become the dealer 
for the next hand, and so on in regular rotation until 
the end of the rubber, when all players must cut to see 
who shall deal first on the new rubber. 

26 



In the Laws of Auction Bridge will be found complete 
details for bidding, scoring, and those things which are 
allowable or prohibited. 

The player on declarer's left is known as ''eldest 
hand" or "elder"; ''dummy," also known as "weak 
hand," sits next, and is opposite the declarer; the re- 
maining player, who sits at declarer's right, is known 
as "pone," "youngest hand," or "younger." The 
declarer's adversaries are collectively called the "side 
players," and sometimes the declarer is referred to as 
the "strong hand." The terms "leader" or "first 
hand," "second hand," "third hand," and "fourth 
hand " show the order in which the contestants have 
played to a trick. The "opening lead" is the first 
card led by elder. An "original lead" is the first card 
led by any player. The "opening bid" is the dealer's 
first bid. An "original bid," or "primary bid," is the 
first bid made by any player. 



SIDE FEATURES 

Attention to the mechanical setting of the game adds 
to its pleasure, and should become a habit with all 
players. Although this topic is intended particularly 
for beginners, it would make many of the older players 
more agreeable partners if they would take it to heart. 
The player who is careless in the arrangement of his 
cards is the kind of player who needs watching to see 
that he does not revoke or make other bad mistakes. 

USE TWO PACKS OF CARDS 

Each side has its own cards. The backs of the two 
packs should be readily distinguishable — for instance, 
one red and the other blue — to prevent mixing them. 
While the dealer is distributing the cards of one pack 
his partner shuffles the other pack, then places this 
''still pack" at the left hand of the one who will next 
deal. It should remain in that place to mark the next 
dealer. 

SORT YOUR CARDS 

Upon the completion of the deal each player should 
at once divide his cards so that all those of a suit will 
come together. Next, alternate the red and black 

28 



suits. Always arrange the suits in the same way. 
For example, spades next to you, diamonds back of 
them, followed by clubs, and hearts furthest away from 
you. The alternation of colors and having only one 
place for each suit form the best possible safeguards 
against revoking. Last of all, arrange the cards of 
each suit in numerical order, with the smallest card 
nearest to you. This facilitates rapid play and assists 
in fixing all the cards in your mind. While arranging, 
and during play, avoid holding your cards so that 
another player can see them. 

COUNT YOUR CARDS 

Before you play a card count the number in each 
suit, thus: three spades, five diamonds, two clubs, 
three hearts, thirteen total. This serves a double 
purpose. It assures you that no misdeal has been made 
on your own cards; it fixes the number of each suit 
you originally held in mind. Later in the game a glance 
at your cards will show the number of times a suit 
has been led or used for ruffing or discarded from. 

BOARDING DUMMY'S HAND 

After the first player, known as eldest hand, has led 
his first card, dummy's hand goes, face up, on the 
table, red and black suits alternating, cards of each 
suit numerically arranged and spread out to give a 
perfect view of each card. Dummy should always 
place his trump suit furthest to his right. With "no 
trumps" the heart suit should be on his right. All the 
cards should be within easy reach of the declarer, 

29 



and the cards played should be boarded between dum- 
my's cards and the declarer. 

KEEPING TRICKS 

The declarer collects and keeps the tricks taken by 
his side. The partner of the one winning the first 
trick for the adversaries keeps their tricks. The four 
cards of a trick should always remain together for 
possible future reference. The tricks should be neatly 
stacked up in any way easy to count. When six tricks 
have been taken by the declarer they can be made 
into a single "book" and set on one side. After that 
the remaining tricks — or *'odd tricks" — can be kept 
one side for ready counting. The ''adversaries' book" 
consists of 7 tricks less the contract. If the declarer 
has bid "Three," the adversaries' book will consist of 
7 — 3=4. The first 4 tricks won can be bunched to- 
gether as a book, and the remaining undertricks 
(those penalizing the declarer) kept separate for ref- 
erence. 

KEEPING SCORE 

There are two distinct ways of keeping the score. 
The first method is less work, as both trick and honor 
points of a side are added in a single column. The 
second form possesses the advantage of clearness, 
since the trick and honor points of a deal can be en- 
tered upon the same line for reference. 

The scorer always puts his own score in the first 
column, and in calling off the point score, as should be 
done after each game, he calls off his own score first. 

30 



In this connection, "Love" means o, thus "Love- 
All" means a game score o to o. 

Suppose Smith and his wife are playing against Mr. 
and Mrs. Brown: Mr. Smith is keeping the score. 
He wins the first right to declare, goes no trump, and 
wins 3 odd tricks, which give him thirty trick points, 
thus winning the first game. His side has all the aces 
in the joint hands of declarer and dummy, thus giving 
40 honor points. Mrs. Brown gains the second dec- 
laration on "Four Clubs," doubled by Mr. Smith. Her 
side wins 5 odd tricks, with 4 honors in her hand and 
the fifth in her partner's (technically known as hav- 
ing 9 honors) . Her score is 5 club tricks at doubled 
value, 60 game points; 54 for honors, 50 for con- 
tract, and 50 for one overtrick, a total of 154 honor 
points. From this is deducted chicane, because Mrs. 
Smith had no clubs, giving a net of 142 honor 
points. Mrs. Brown gains the contract on the next 
deal, on a bid of "Two Hearts." She wins only 
7 tricks, and loses 50 honor points to her adversa- 
ries, but wins "simple honors" (3 honors on her 
side), worth 16 honor points. The fourth deal re- 
sults in Mrs. Smith winning the odd at no trumps; 
this scores her side 10 game points, with "honors 
easy," since each side holds 2 aces. The fifth deal ends 
the rubber, with Smith winning 6 odd no-trump tricks, 
worth 60 game points, and 100 honor points for 4 aces 
in his own hand, and 20 added for "little slam." His 
side also takes 250 honor points for the rubber. Forms 
I and 2 show the difference in keeping the score under the 
two systems. It is customary to draw a line across the 
sheet after each game to prevent mistakes on game score. 

31 



Form I, where "game score" goes below the line 
and "honor score" above the line, gave rise to such 
expressions as "We have nothing below the line," 
meaning "We have not yet scored toward game." 



FORM I 



250 

120 

50 

12 

40 



30 



10 
60 



572 
230 

342 



16 
50 
50 
54 



60 



230 



FORM 2 



Tricks 
30 


Honors 
40 


Tricks 


Honors 




12 


60 


54 

50 
50 




50 




16 


10 








60 


120 
250 






100 


100 


60 


60 




572 
230 




230 




342 







It is safer to enter each item of the score as is done 
on the second declaration rather than to lump them 
as is done on the fifth declaration. 

The final difference between the two scores, in this 
case 342, shows the winnings and losses for the first 
rubber. 

32 



Suppose that our imaginary players exchange part- 
ners for the second rubber, which Mr. Smith and Mrs. 
Brown win by 504 points. The ladies next play to- 
gether, losing the rubber but coming out 40 points 
ahead on final score — as not uncommonly occurs. 
Form 3 shows a common method of keeping their in- 
dividual scores. The points of the rubber are first 
entered at the head of the double column. The winning 
side has **plus" scores, the losing side has ''minus" 
scores. If properly entered, the plus and minus 
balances must be identical after each rubber. 



FORM 3 



Rubbers 


I 


2 , 


3 


4 


Points 


342 


SO4 


40 


406 


Players 


Plus 


Minus 


Plus 


Minus 


Plus 


Minus 


Plus 


Minus 


Mr. Smith 


342 




846 




806 




400 




Mrs. Smith 


342 






X62 




122 


284 




Mr. Brown 




342 




846 




886 




480 


Mrs. Brown 




342 


162 




202 




202 




Miss Brown 
















406 


Balances 


684 


684 


1008 


1008 


1008 


1008 


886 


886 



If Miss Brown replaces her mother on the fourth 
rubber, plays with Mr. Smith, and loses 406 points, 
either a new record can be started or her score can be 
added to the old record, as shown above. 

33 



Every player should have practice in keeping the 
score. Beginners should have at least two scores kept 
and compared. 

When a single score is kept it should be in large 
figures and remain on the table, so that all the players 
can conveniently see how the score stands. 

STAKES 

If the game is played for a definite amount per point, 
the individual score shown in Form 3 should be kept 
in dollars and cents instead of points. 

While no stakes are necessary to render the game 
thoroughly enjoyable to real enthusiasts, many players 
feel the need of some incentive to keep them from 
careless or reckless play. 

Unless the game is played for the money in it, the 
stakes are usually very modest, one-half cent a point 
or one -quarter cent a point being quite common 
stakes. The lowest stakes of which I have a personal 
knowledge were 5 cents a hundred points, the highest 
were I5 a point. In France it is common to make the 
enjeu (stake) so much per game or rubber, regardless 
of the exact number of points won. To some extent 
that custom is followed here by playing for so much 
"a comer." Where payment is to be made after each 
rubber, the loser pays the winner sitting on his right. 
At some clubs it is customary for the score card, set- 
ting forth the details and signed by the players, to be 
turned in to some attendant. The club collects from 
losing players, and at regular intervals settles with 
winning players. 

34 



In settling a score played at a fixed sum per point 
odd amounts are commonly disregarded. When the 
stake is lo cents a point, players agree to settle either 
to the nearest dollar or perhaps to the nearest fifty 
cents. At one-quarter-cent points settlement would 
be made to the nearest 5 cents. 

Side bets follow the game stakes. If you win the 
rubber but lose on the total score, you also lose your 
side bet. 

If two players desire to play for stakes while the 
others do not, this can easily be arranged by the first 
two players always being opponents and retaining their 
seats. The second two are also always opponents, but 
exchange seats after each rubber. 

"Carrying a player" occurs when one player wants 
to play for lower stakes than the others or declines to 
play for money. One of the other players (or an out- 
sider) agrees to back him financially, either in part or 
wholly, receiving his gains and paying his losses. 

If your partner at any time fails to follow suit, al- 
ways ask, "No more spades [or whatever the suit is], 
partner?" The inquiry may save you a revoke penalty 
of three tricks, or 150 points. 

If you want temporarily to leave the table when 
dummy, ask the protection of the table, which is 
courteously extended to a player, saying, "Please see 
that my partner does not revoke," or words to that 
effect. 
4 



GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF AUCTION 
BRIDGE 

Auction Bridge, or, more briefly, Auction, follows the 
parent game of Bridge in most particulars. In a few 
respects the two differ radically. 

The cutting, dealing, honor count, 30 points to a 
game, chicane, slam, and little slam are as at Bridge. 
If the dealer wins his first bid. Auction is in the main 
played precisely the same way as Bridge. 

Auction differs from Bridge in awarding the right of 
declaration to the player who contracts to win the 
highest game score on the deal. If two players offer 
to win equally high scores, the declaration is made by 
the one contracting to win the greatest number of 
tricks. A player bidding Two Hearts undertakes to 
win 8 tricks, and has the preference over one bidding 
Two Diamonds, because two hearts count 16, while 
two diamonds only count 14. A player bidding Three 
Clubs (worth 18) outbids one bidding Two Royal 
Spades or Two Royals (worth 18), because it is more 
difficult to win three odd tricks than it is to win two 
odd tricks. 

The advantage of bidding for the declaration is that 
no player with fine royals or hearts or a no-trump 

36 



hand is forced to waste his strength on an uninterest- 
ing spade or club call, as is frequently the case at 
Bridge. 

Regardless of the declaration, the deal passes regu- 
larly to the left, as at Bridge. In the latter game the 
dealer can pass, but at Auction he must bid something. 
The rules protect the dealer who bids One Spade from 
weakness by limiting his loss to loo honor points. 
Moreover, he can be certain of being outbid on prac- 
tically every occasion, so that being obliged to make 
the first bid is no trap to catch the dealer. 

Only the declarer can score game points. If he loses, 
his adversaries score only in the honor column, which 
does not help them toward winning game or rubber. 
The successful declarer of hearts, unless doubled, wins 
exactly the same amount as he would at Bridge; but 
successful adversaries take 50 honor points for each 
trick the declarer falls short of his contract, whether 
he bids no trump, hearts, diamonds, clubs, or spades. 
Doubling raises the value to 100 per under trick, and re- 
doubling increases it to 200. This makes a losing game 
at Auction very costly for the habitual overbidder of 
his hand, and justly penalizes any player who attempts 
to secure more than his due declarations. Two hun- 
dred fifty honor points are awarded the wdnner of the 
rubber. 

The average value of a rubber at Auction is 400 
points, as against 170 at Bridge. On this account it 
is customary for players to make the Auction stakes 
one-half as great per point as at Bridge. The time 
consumed in bidding makes the average time for an 
Auction rubber exceed that for one at the older game, 

37 



so that an evening's loss on poor Auction hands at 
half stakes is really apt to be less than on equally bad 
Bridge hands. 

Honor counts are of less consequence at Auction 
than at Bridge. Five heart honors in one hand are 
still worth 80 honor points, and the odd trick is still 
worth 8 game points. There the similarity ceases. 
If you lose by two heart tricks at Bridge you lose 16 
points below the line; but you may win 64 points total 
by holding 5 honors in one hand. With a certain 
safe state of score you may not regret such a result. 
At Auction a similar termination to a heart declaration 
yields you 80 points above the line ; neither side scores 
below the line, but the adversaries receive 100 honor 
points. Bridge thus gives a net gain of 64 points, 
while Auction gives a net loss of 20 points to a de- 
clarer on five heart honors in one hand attempting to 
win 7 tricks and taking only 5 tricks. 

At Bridge each side contests merely for tricks. At 
Auction there are two distinct contests: at bidding, 
to secure the coveted position of declarer; afterw^ard 
to secure the greatest possible number of tricks. 
Spirited bidding results in the declarer having to win 
several tricks over the book, whereas at Bridge win- 
ning the odd trick is sufficient to avoid any loss 
except a comparatively unimportant one in honors. 
With exactly the same cards all around, it is far more 
exciting to struggle for the few tricks which the weaker 
side can possibly take, if the declarer must win 10 
tricks to meet his contract at Auction, than if he has 
only to win the odd at Bridge. 

The information given by four players bidding is 
38 



often most enlightening to both sides ; sometimes a bid 
obscures. In any event the information obtained must 
be assimilated thoroughly to properly play a hand. On 
the whole, greater skill, a keener knowledge of htiman 
nature, and a closer acquaintanceship with card prob- 
abilities are required to bid to the extreme limit of 
safety and play the cards at Auction than to declare 
and play the same cards at Bridge. 

Good team work counts more at the later game 
than at Bridge. A reckless or erratic player's chances 
to mislead his partner are also much greater at Auction. 
This is the only real drawback to the game. Failures 
of your partner to disclose strength when needed to 
bid up your hand ; neglecting to double or to show his 
best suit to which you can lead ; bidding when he should 
remain silent, or bidding on another suit when he should 
support your bid, are all features of the game which 
have to be faced. 

It is generally useless to find fault with your partner, 
for several reasons: it may further upset his play; 
habitual faultfinding is unpleasant to all the other 
players, and is rather a characteristic of an ordinary 
player than a good one. The best players sometimes 
are temporarily off their game, or see possibilities in a 
play which do not appear on the surface. 

Sizing up a hand and proper bidding are more im- 
portant than perfect play of the cards; but both are 
essential to success. A skilful bidder tries to win on 
reasonable contracts, and cheerfully surrenders the 
declaration if he believes he can win more by "setting 
back" (or "stinging," as it is sometimes called) his 
opponents on impossible contracts. 

39 



A reliable bidding partner is an invaluable asset. 
Bluff bids are much like false cards — ^more apt to in- 
jure a partner than an opponent — although both have 
their occasional uses. Considering the score necessi- 
ties, bids should follow a reasonable system, and 
clearly disclose what to expect of a partner. 

To avoid any misunderstanding because of a simi- 
larity in sound between hearts and pass, it is better to 
say "no," or "no more," than to use the word "pass." 
Also to attract attention, the prefix one, five, etc., 
should accompany all bids, as One Spade, Two Clubs, 
One No Trump, etc. Similarly, it is preferable to 
say "I double Two Diamonds," than merely to say 
"I double" or "double." The prefix shows what you 
believe you are doubling, and sometimes prevents a 
later serious misunderstanding. 

Time is well spent in the fundamental principles 
of any game which you want to play well. To apply 
what you read, quickly and accurately, requires much 
practice at the table. An experienced player with 
equal cards will always beat the purely theoretical 
player; but between two experienced players the odds 
are always in favor of the one who plays the system 
according most nearly with the probabilities. 

Until somewhat advanced in the game only Chief 
Essentials of the following chapters need be read. A 
little reading at a time and much practice is the surest 
way to learn thoroughly the game. 



WINNING CARDS 

Chief Essentials: 

Consider every card having more than even chances 
to take a trick as a "probable winner." 

At trumps the probable winners are: the ace, the 
fully guarded king and queen (king accompanied by 
at least one other trump, queen accompanied by not 
less than two other trumps), and the "extra cards" of 
the trump suit (all over three cards in the trump suit, if 
it contains five or more), with the aces and protected 
(fully guarded) kings of all three plain suits (the three 
suits not trumps). Five or more trumps in the de- 
clarer's hand are thus worth a trick for each trump, 
less each missing ace, king, and queen in the suit. If 
one of these is lacking, count four tricks for a 5-card 
suit; if two are missing, count the .suit as probably 
worth three tricks. 

At no trump the probable winners are: all aces and 
protected kings, all extra- well-guarded queens (queen 
accompanied by at least three of its suit, or by two 
others, of which one is an honor), all extra cards of an 
establishable suit (a long suit accompanied by as many 
cards of re-entry as there are gaps in its strength), all 

41 



cards of a solid suit (one in regular order from ace 
downward) . 

Cards of re-entry are aces, protected kings, and 
extra-well-guarded queens with less than five cards in 
their suits. A suit of five or more cards is unlikely to 
be an opponent's strong suit, and hence is unlikely to 
be led enough times to win with your queen. 

If you bid on hearts, the following hand should be 
counted as probably good for six tricks, since it will 
win that number, on the average, for the declarer: 

Hearts, K-Q- 10-6-4; Clubs, A-J-2; Diamonds, 
Q-5; Spades, A-6-3. 

The probable winners are: in hearts, king, queen, 
and two extra cards ; ace clubs ; nothing in diamonds ; 
ace spades. 

The following hand is probably worth 5 tricks to 
the declarer of no trumps: 

Hearts, K-J; Clubs, K-J-5-3; Diamonds, Q-J-8- 
7; Spades, A-Q-2. 

The probable winners are: ace spades; kings of 
hearts and clubs; queens of diamonds and spades. 

Some of the specified cards may lose, other cards not 
named may win; but average results, not special 
cases, must be considered. 



Details : 

If you hold the king and one small card of the trump 
suit, your king is safe if the ace lies with your right- 
hand opponent, because you can throw your small 
card on his ace if he leads it; or if he leads low, your 

42 



king will win. If the ace lies to your left, and either 
a low card or the ace is led from there, your king will 
be safe; or if a low card is led from your right and 
you play low, your king is safe if yotu* left-hand op- 
ponent plays his ace. If your partner has the ace, 
the only chance of your losing your king will be where 
both king and ace unfortunately go on the same trick. 
If you have both king and queen of trumps, both of 
them may win a trick. It is impossible for both of 
them to lose. The king and two small trumps also 
add safety, but even a single guard to a king adds 
sufficient safety to permit it to be called a probable 
winner in the sense in which the term is used here. 
For similar reasons, although to a less extent, a doubly 
guarded queen of trumps is fair to regard as a probable 
winner, or a trebly guarded jack of trumps. A "cold" 
king (one without a guard), or a singly guarded queen, 
may be fortunate enough to win a trick. When they 
do, they belong merely to the class of ''chance win- 
ners," along with small trumps, which win through 
ruffing a suit of which you hold none, or with a low 
card which wins a trick because the higher ones have 
fallen together, or have been discarded. 

On account of the danger of being ruffed no card 
smaller than an ace or guarded king of a plain suit can 
safely be considered as a probable winning card. Lower 
cards can sometimes be utilized to win side-suit tricks 
when a hand is very strong in trumps. Some players 
assume that a four-card suit will ultimately be apt to 
win a trick merely on length of suit. It is entirely 
contrary to the probabilities to assume this, as it 
means that neither adversary will average to hold 

43 



more than three cards of the same suit. If you hold 
four cards of a suit, the mathematical probabilities 
concerning the case are as follows: 

17 that your suit is longer than any other player's 
83 that another player has four of that suit 
52 that another player holds more cards of the suit than 
you do 



152 total chances 

One-third of the time your partner will be the other 
player who holds the long hand in the suit. Therefore, 
there are 62 chances that your side holds a long card 
in the suit to 90 chances that your opponents equal 
or exceed your length of suit. 

If you declare and hold five trumps, it leaves only 
eight others to be divided among the other three play- 
ers. Consequently you will generally find that after 
three rounds of trumps you hold the only ones left. 
For that reason these two extra cards can be con- 
sidered probable winners. With six trumps you can 
count on having three extra ones, and so on. With 
only four trumps there remain nine others to be di- 
vided among the three players. Unless each happens 
to hold exactly three trumps, you will hold no more 
than some other player, and it is accordingly unsafe 
to reckon that you hold a "long trump" with only four 
dealt to you. Even with six trumps you may find 
some player with seven trumps against you. The 
chance that either opponent will do so is, however, 
only about one in fifty thousand, so it need not worry 
you. Good play is based on probabilities, and not on 
possibilities. 

44 



If we take the largest number of hearts held by any 
one of the four players and add to it the largest number 
held by any player in each of the other three suits, the 
sum of these four amounts will vary from i6 (when no 
player holds over four cards of any suit) to 52 (when 
each player holds an entire suit of 13 cards). This 
sum we can call the number of "prospective winners," 
since it includes what would be the probable winners 
in all four suits. Practical play does not directly 
recognize such a thing as prospective winners, but in- 
directly scientific play is obliged to consider them. 
On this account a few facts concerning them will be 
of interest to deep students of the game. 

The average number of prospective winners to a 
deal is 19.774, or roughly 20. So the average number 
of prospective winners to a hand is slightly less than 5. 
The number of prospective winners to a suit is the 
least possible number of tricks which could be won by 
that suit if it became the trump ; it may be as low as 
4 or as high as 13. It is near enough to call its aver- 
age 5. 

The prospective winners in the suit selected as 
trumps become probable winners in that suit, but only 
the aces and guarded kings of the other three suits 
remain probable winners. On an average, there will 
be 5 probable winners in the trump suit and 6 prob- 
able winners in the other three suits combined, leaving 
2 chance winners to be made up through ruffs, finesses, 
an even distribution of cards in a plain suit, or by a 
plain-suit card winning after trumps are exhausted. 
The struggle at trumps comes in creating chance win- 
ners and defeating probable winners. 

45 



Ordinarily the number of cards regarded as probable 
winners lessens, as when a plain-suit ace is trumped, 
or a king loses to the ace, and their place is filled by- 
added chance winners. On an average, about six 
tricks are taken by trumps. 

At no trumps the struggle comes in reducing the 
average of 20 prospective winners to 13 cards actually 
taking tricks. This is accomplished by establishing a 
long .suit and weakening the opposing side through 
discards. 

On an average, the declarer has 5 probable winners 
in his hand by picking his declaration. If he declares 
trumps, he ordinarily reduces the probable winners 
held by each other hand to- an average of 2, with 2 
chance winners to fight for. If he declares no trumps, 
he permits each other hand to retain 5 prospective 
winners. That is why a no-trump declaration is more 
of a gamble than a trump declaration ; hence the reason 
that for desperate cases it is the best resort, since it is 
least apt to reduce the strength of dummy's hand; 
but for ordinary purposes it should only be bid under 
favorable conditions, when the declarer holds more 
than his share of prospective winners. 

At trumps, the ability to choose the trump suit 
averages roughly to mean 5 tricks in the declarer's 
hand, instead of 2 2-3 tricks when some one else de- 
clares; at no trumps no such reduction in oppos- 
ing hands comes immediately. The declarer's chief 
strength at no trumps comes in his perfect knowledge 
of his resources, his power to combine the strength of 
both hands to best advantage, the ability to throw 
the lead from one hand to the other, to lead from the 

46 



weak hand to the strong, to pick the adversary through 
whose hand he wants to lead, and to avoid finessing 
against the dangerous hand. He can strike immediate- 
ly to set up his strong suit, while his adversaries are 
still skirmishing to find the suit in which their joint 
strength chiefly lies. 



ATTACKING HANDS 

Chief Essentials: 

An attacking hand is one sufficiently strong probably 
to win the odd or more upon its holder's declaration. 

At trumps such a hand should contain 5 probable 
winners, with at least 3 of these in trumps. 

At no trumps there are needed for a genuine attack- 
ing hand 5 probable winners, including at least one 
ace, divided among not less than three suits, or 4 
probable winners covering all suits, provided that at 
least one of them is an ace, and that none are lower 
than well-guarded kings. 

Unless you are behind on the rubber game. and bid 
to prevent opponents from going out, it is senseless 
to secure a contract which you cannot fulfil. 

If your partner promises no help, under ordinary 
circumstances you are not justified in expecting to 
win a contract with weaker hands than those given 
above. 

When safely ahead of opponents any unusual risk 
is not justifiable. 

Weaker hands should ordinarily be used to support 
your partner's bid or to try to sting opponents. 

48 



Details : 

ATTACKING DECLARATION AT TRUMPS 

To spare small trumps to ruff your adversaries' long 
suits and still be able to lead them often enough to 
exhaust opposing trumps necessitates a long trump 
suit. 

The "top honors" (ace, king, or queen) are also 
necessary to prevent an adversary winning your trump 
leads and returning his established plain suit for you 
to ruff. Both length and strength in trumps are 
necessary to command the situation. 

The next best thing to holding both is to have 
either great strength, as A-K-Q-J, or great length, 
not less than 6 trumps. 

It is not safe to calculate that you hold an extra 
card (one more of the suit than any other player holds) 
with only 4 trumps. To be able to win three tricks in 
a trump suit of only four cards, you must accordingly 
hold at least 3 honors, one of which must be either the 
ace or the king. With ace, king, or queen missing, there 
is no certainty of your winning the desired three tricks ; 
but, taking into consideration dummy's chance to hold 
one of the missing honors, the chances are reasonable. 
Any four trump honors will insure taking three tricks. 

Four cards, accordingly, is the least length ever 
utiHzed by any one for a trump suit, and three honors 
(including either ace or king) is the least strength 
necessary for so short a suit. 

Five cards in the trump suit averages to insure a 
longer suit than any one else holds. Even the 6-5-4- 

49 



3-2 of trumpvS will win 2 tricks 25 times out of 79 times, 
and I trick 64 times out of 79. 

If, instead of being the lowest possible five cards, 
they come at random from 2 up to jack, but not higher, 
43 times out of 79 you will win two tricks with them, 
either because neither adversary holds over three 
trumps or because his last trump is outranked by 
yours. 

Unless your suit of 5 trumps runs unusually low, 
you are accordingly justified in counting 2 extra 
cards to it. If headed by the ace or the king, you can 
calculate that it will win three tricks, and is sufficiently 
strong for attack, if you hold two outside tricks in 
addition. Five trumps to the queen is an exceedingly 
dubious make, unless you hold also the jack or 10-9; 
in fact, it is a minimum of strength necessary to declare. 

Six trumps to ace-king, through the advantage of 
his position, insures six tricks to the declarer 7 out of 
13 times. Seven to ace-king is good for seven tricks 
37 out of 56 times. Eight to ace-king is good for 
eight tricks 28 out of 37 times. Nine to the ace with- 
out the king is good for nine tricks 32 out of 59 times. 
Ten to the ace is good for ten tricks 8 out of 13 
times, and 11 to the ace will win a trick for every 
trump held 23 out of 29 times. 

Lacking ace, king, and queen (the top honors), you 
can still reckon that 6 trumps, ranging from deuce to 
jack, just as they fall, will average to be worth three 
tricks. Six trumps, headed by an honor, even the 10, 
is accordingly a legitimate declaration so far as its 
own suit is concerned, but with it should go some out- 
side strength. 

50 



Eight trumps or more, without an honor, is a strong 
suit upon which to declare, and is legitimate without 
outside tricks; but 7 low trumps and no outside tricks 
is fit only for emergencies. 

A hand worth only four tricks is weak; but if three 
of these can be won by trumps it stands a fair show to 
succeed. 

If you ask dummy to win three tricks when your 
own hand is worth only four tricks, you have 11 
chances in 19 of success. As dummy's cards will be 
exposed, he must be more conservative than the de- 
clarer in calculating his probable winners, giving an 
extra guard or a supporting honor before he calculates 
that a plain king or queen will win a trick on his 
partner's declaration. 

ATTACKING DECLARATION AT NO TRUMPS 

The chief distinction between a trump and a no- 
trump hand comes in the way the strength lies. If 
concentrated mainly in one suit, especially if it lies 
largely in a long suit of low cards, it is a trump hand. 
If the strength is scattered through 3 or 4 suits, par- 
ticularly if it fails to give the royal or the heart suits, 
at least three probable tricks, it is a no-trump hand. 
Frequentl}^ either strong trumps or no trumps can be 
declared upon the same cards. 

A single weak suit may ruin the chances to go game 
at no trumps. Therefore, a trump declaration apt to 
win the game, or one probably able to win as many 
tricks as a no trumper, is preferable whenever all four 
suits are not doubly guarded, or unless three suits can 
be stopped once and the fourth suit consists of a long 
5 SI 



set-up suit. Do not consider a suit as positively 
establishable and go no trump unless this suit can be 
established by means of the re-entry in your weakest 
vsuit, if game can surely be won at an alternative trump 
declaration. 

Any no trumper without an ace, unless all suits are 
well guarded, and one of them can be established in 
one round, is legitimate only as a desperate resort 
against cautious bidders. Your adversaries can use 
their aces to establish a suit against singly stopped 
suits, and will probably count 30 honor points on aces, 
possibly 100 honor points, against you, in addition to 
the score for setting you. 

Five probable winners properly distributed over at 
least 3 suits, including at least one ace, is a fair average 
hand upon which to declare. Four certain winners, 
unless all are aces, or at least well-guarded kings, is a 
weak hand, since the average adverse strength will be 
to the declarer's strength as 1 1 to 9. Even the strength 
of his position will scarcely overcome this handicap. 

Four aces in one hand urges a no-trump bid unless 
the game can be won at trumps, on account of power 
to stop adverse suits and establish partner's long suit ; 
also, on account of the 100 honor-point value of 4 aces 
in one hand. 

Three aces do not compel a no-trump bid. If the 
hand happens to be very weak in the "top suits" 
(royals and hearts), with a love score, or weak in all 
suits with a high score, the best chance often lies in 
supporting partner's bid. Ordinarily, the 3 aces will, 
however, bring a hand up to the necessary strength 
to make some bid. 

52 



Two aces and another guarded suit give good 
grounds for a no trumper when pushed by the score. 

The ace of one suit and an estabHshed diamond or 
club suit of six or more cards constitute what is known 
as a "one-suit no trumper." In similar m.anner 6 or 
7 probable winners, distributed in any way, give a 
reasonable hand for no-trump bids, if no satisfactory 
trump call is possible. 

Unevenly divided cards, giving part long and part 
very short suits, unless the latter are well guarded, 
greatly increase the risks of a no trumper. Irregular 
hands are, as a rule, best adapted to trump bids. 

A theoretical average hand would contain i ace, 
I king, I queen, i jack, and i ten. If the strength is 
well distributed over the various suits, a hand con- 
taining one more king or queen than this average hand 
is suitable for a no trumper. 

Caution must be used in considering two or three 
cards as probable winners when guarded in the slightest 
legitimate manner possible. A king can be considered 
as more likely than not to win a trick if singly guarded; 
but 3 such lightly guarded kings could not be con- 
sidered as worth three tricks, when in reality they are 
worth only two tricks. Take the following hand: 

Hearts, K-g 

Clubs, A 

Diamonds, K-3 

Spades, Q-J-io-9-8-6-3-2 

You are nearly certain to be attacked in one of the 
three short suits. As the opening lead must come up 
to you, no apprehension can be felt about stopping 

53 



the first lead on a no-trump declaration. You will 
(unless dummy's hand discloses something different 
to do) then start to establish your spade suit. Prob- 
ably dummy can care for one of your short suits, but 
unless he has the ace of spades you will lose the lead, 
and in all probabiHty be attacked the second time in 
the same weak suit where you won your first trick. 
A. slaughter is apt to follow, on top of which your 
second weak suit will be attacked. You can stop that 
once, if the lead comes from your left, and again lead 
a spade, and a second attack follows, which dummy 
can perhaps stop. If he cannot, your spade suit will 
be only remnants by the time your third suit is opened. 

On the other hand, of course, dummy may have just 
what you lack, and a slam may follow, but it is risky 
business. The safer thing to do with such a hand is 
to bid royals instead of no trumps. 

If the probable winners are considered in a reason- 
able way, the}^ will be found to be your simplest and 
most reliable guide to what can be done with a hand. 
As all probabilities given in this work take into ac- 
count the actual capacity as trick - gainers of these 
probable winners, and disregard all not mentioned, to 
make practical use of the probabilities it will be neces- 
sary to value a hand as already outlined. 

An established suit adds greatly to the strength of 
a hand. An establishable suit is less desirable, as it 
involves risks in setting it up. Sequences, also, add 
strength. If moderately high, like queen, jack, lo, 9, 
8, they insure stopping the run of adverse suits, and 
make an excellent lever to pry out opposing higher 
cards. Any guarded suit offers an obstacle to oppos- 

54 



ing strength, and gives re-entry to a hand. Cards of 
re-entry are essential to success at no trumps, as a 
player is helpless, no matter how good a suit he holds, 
if he cannot win a trick to secure the lead of his strong 
suit. At tnmips, re-entry to lead a long suit can often 
be obtained by ruffing opposing suits, but no such 
refuge is found at no tnmips. 

Half the time a suit is divided among the four 
players in one of the three following ways: 

4, 4, 3, and 2 cards to them respectively 

5, 3, 3, and 2 cards to them respectively 
5, 4, 3, and I cards to them respectively 

The other half of the time a suit is divided in one 
of thirty-six other possible ways. 
More than half the time if you hold : 

3, 4, or 5 of a suit, some other player has only 2 
6, 7, or 8 of a suit, some other player has only i 
9 or more of a suit, some other player has none 

About once every deal a suit will go around three 
times before somebody can ruff, if you only hold three 
of that suit. 

Twice in 9 times you and your partner may both 
expect to hold the same long suit. 

If you declare no trump when holding cards in only 
three suits, there are 2 chances that your partner can 
block the missing suit once to i chance that you will 
lose every trick in that suit. 

The declarer, with dummy's assistance and the ad- 
vantage of playing two hands, can more often than not 
win every trick in trumps when holding: 

55 



5 headed by ace, king, and queen 
6, 7, or 8 headed bj^ ace and king 
9 or more headed by ace alone 

In sizing up a hand to determine its best use, the 
various facts and probabilities have to be mentally re- 
viewed, and a decision made whether you had better 
try to win a contract, to support your partner's bid, 
to attempt to sting your opponents, or merely to keep 
down their score as much as possible. 

If you have been a Bridge player, remember that 
merely having to win the odd is quite different from 
contracting to win a definite number of tricks. If 
you have been a Whist player, the first thing to learn 
is that you know absolutely nothing about Auction 
Bridge on that account, but are positively handicapped 
by some of its methods of play. Every Auction Bridge 
player must learn the rules of bid and play of this new 
game. Then he must adhere to them in every case 
where he cannot give his partner strong and logical 
reasons why he thinks the probabilities upon which 
the rules are based do not apply to the case in hand. 



SCIENTIFIC BIDDING 

Chief Essentials: 

The average strength of a hand gives the ability to 
win 5 tricks with it, if allowed to select the declaration, 
and to have the dummy as partner. The average 
strength of dummy's cards is 2^ tricks on your dec- 
laration. You must therefore count on your partner 
for 2 tricks. If he can assist you with more than 2 
tricks, he can show it by bidding. If his hand is 
worth two tricks or less, he must pass, unless he has 
dealt. The dealer is obliged to bid something, and 
must bid i-Spade whenever his hand probably cannot 
win over 2 tricks. 

There are only three distinct varieties of bids — 
** protective," ''informatory," and ''business." 

Protective bids include the i-Spade bid by dealer 
when he lacks a higher bid. They also include "take- 
out bids," which are made by a player who believes 
that less will be lost on his bid than on the one made 
by his partner. 

A ''desperation bid" is also of the protective type 
when deliberately made with the intention of taking 
a small loss in preference to losing the rubber game on 
opponent's call. 

57 



Informatory bids show partner that the bidder can 
help to the extent of at least 3 tricks if the former can 
make a business bid. 

"Invitation bids" are a species of informatory bids 
which notify the bidder's partner that more than or- 
dinary assistance can be given at no trumps. The 
genuine informatory bid offers more than ordinary 
assistance on any call chosen by the bidder's partner, 
so that the distinction between these two is rather in 
name than in cards held. 

** Supporting bids" are really informatory bids made 
after a partner has bid and has had his bid topped by 
a higher one. The supporting bid increases partner's 
bid, so that it outranks that of opponents. An in- 
formatory bid, unless coming as a supporting bid, is 
made merely to show partner that he can count on 
more than the average assistance of 2 tricks; but such 
a bid does not expect to win a contract. 

Business bids are made with the intention of try- 
ing to win a contract, and show sufficient strength to 
win at least the odd with average card distribution in 
the other three hands. A high supporting bid and a 
take-out bid from strength are both varieties of busi- 
ness bids. ** Shut-out bids" are strong business bids 
originally made sufficiently high to warn partner not 
to change the bid (except on great strength), and in- 
tended to prevent opponents from exchanging in- 
formation through their bids. 

Strong hands desire information as to the assistance 
partner can give, the suit he can care for, and how many 
tricks he can take. Weak hands should seek to give 
this information. 

58 



If all players make their proper bids the chances 
are very decidedly against any bid lower than lo 
winning the contract. A bid of i -Royal (9 points), 
for example, stands 95 in 100 chances that one of the 
other hands can legitimately over call it. Lower bids 
stand still less chances of holding. 

Bids of i-No Trump, i-Royal, i-Heart, 2-Dia- 
monds, or 2-Clubs mean business, and must not be 
made unless the bidder sees his way clear to winning 
the tricks called for by his bid. Opening bids of Two, 
except in spades, should only be made either on hands 
which are probably capable of going game or else hands 
which are reasonably certain to win the bid, but which 
are probably worthless on any other call. 

Minimum business bids are also made of i -Diamond 
and i-Club at certain scores. 

Bids of i-Diamond, i-Club, 3-Spades, or 2-Spades 
can be made without holding enough strength actu- 
ally to win a contract. They are then informatory 
bids, and have little chance of holding. i-Heart 
should be bid for informatory purposes only when 
it is also a weak business bid. It is unnecessary to 
bid I -Royal for information except in very rare cases. 

An opening bid of two or more of any suit except 
spades is a shut-out bid, since it gives each other 
player only i in 7 chances to overbid prudently with- 
out having heard from his partner. An opening bid 
of I -No Trump is less final, as it allows each other 
player i in 5 legitimate chances to overbid on his own 
cards only. 

Aces, guarded kings, 3 honors in a suit, or an estab- 
lished suit are the only cards which you can con- 

59 



fidently expect will aid your partner, unless you know 
his suit. Such cards are useful in any of the five 
declarations he may want. Mere length of suit is use- 
ful to him in trumps only if you are short-suited else- 
where. Length of suit is useful to him at no truhips 
if it happens to supplement his own cards. It is prob- 
able, however, that length of suit in low cards will be 
utterly useless to him, and in consequence an informa- 
tory bid cannot take it into account. Length of trump 
suit counts on your own business bids; or in a sup- 
porting bid if the length can be used to ruff a suit of 
Which you hold none, or only one card, possibly it 
may be used to ruff a two-card suit. 

Details : 

Scientific bidding, by closely following the prob- 
abilities and making due practical allowance for score 
and personal characteristics of the various players, 
enables the two members of a team to unite in support- 
ing the bid most favorable to their joint hands. It 
permits partners to bid the limit warranted by condi- 
tions, seldom gives them unfavorable contracts, and 
leaves the call to opponents whenever less loss will 
result from losing the declarership than from gaining 
it. To accomplish all this, the few possible bids must 
be utilized to inform partner of the most vital facts, 
and in a way to prove least harmful if he happens to 
be very weak while opponents are powerful. 

The principal things to tell partner are: 

1. That you cannot give over average assistance. 

2. That you can help by at least 3 tricks. 

60 



3- That you have an adverse suit stopped. 

4. That you hold a set-up suit, or an establishable suit 
with the re-entry to set it up. 

5. That you can probably win a specific contract with 
ordinary help from him. 

6. That your hand can best be played only on a particular 
call. 

7. That you can defeat opponent's call. 

There are more chances that your partner can bet- 
ter afford to bid on some trump call than that he can 
best go without trumps. A bid offering unusual help 
at no trumps is apt to be useless information to him 
unless it also means unusual assistance on his best 
trump call. 

It is also puerile to inform your partner that you 
merely hold one or two sure tricks, because he is 
obliged to assume that you have them in order to 
make most of his bids. It is utter folly to bid on a 
low call merely because you have an average hand, 
probably able to win the odd if your bid stands, when 
you know that your bid will probably be wasted. 
Weak bids should be utilized solely in attempts to 
convey clear information which will enable your side 
to decide upon its best call, and in pushing that call 
to its reasonable limit. 

The simple bidding rules given hereafter will enable 
you to handle successfully nearly all cases arising. 
Judgment and experience are necessary to cope with 
fine players for opponents, unfamiliar bidding systems, 
and unusual card distributions. When it comes to the 
play of a hand, much experience, as well as mastering 
the rules for ordinary cases, is needed. The beginner 

61 



can, however, very quickly learn to bid better than 
most players he meets by thoroughly mastering his 
bidding rules. It is not at all uncommon to see young 
players hold their own at Auction against old Whist 
and Bridge players, because the former gain enough on 
their better bids to offset the latter 's superior play of 
the hands. 

Against players with a penchant for holding back 
on strong hands, with the intention of setting you, 
bids must be made more conservatively than against 
free bidders. 

Bluff must be used with great caution against scien- 
tific bidders; but it can be used to advantage against 
players who dislike to lose contracts. The style of 
bidding must vary to some extent with the character 
of your partner. With an over- venturesome partner 
you should rather underbid than bid your hand in 
full. The reverse is true when coupled to a timid or 
tiltra-conservative partner. 

Two thousand three hundred and sixty-eight times 
in 10,000 (about i in 4 times) your partner will hold a 
hand upon which he can legitimately bid nd trumps, 
upon assurance that you can take at least three tricks, 
but upon which he would not be justified in bidding 
no trump as third bidder, because he can see only four 
tricks in his own hand. Thus an informatory bid of 
One raises his chances to bid i-No Trump from 3,023 
in 10,000 (the ordinary chance of each player) to 
5,391 (an increase of nearly 80 per cent.), giving him 
54 chances, instead of 30 chances, in 100 to bid no 
trumps. There is only i in 20 chances that nobody 
can take you out of even an informatory heart bid, 

62 



and if left in you still have 4 in 9 chances to fulfil your 
contract. In other words, even an informatory bid 
of I -Heart (always provided that all players are bid- 
ding their hands to the full) has 6,643 chances for good 
against 275 chances for harm, and 3,082 chances for 
little or no result either way. Diamond and club in- 
formatory bids are still safer and more useful. 

Informatory bids have very unfortunately been 
both misunderstood and improperly used by the ma- 
jority of players, until many fine players have aban- 
doned their use for the moment. As game can very 
seldom be won from love on either club or diamond 
calls, it is self-evident that a rational use of low bids 
in those suits to show unusual assistance to partner, 
on any call best suiting his hand, are extremely im- 
portant. The great secrets of successful and profitable 
bidding lie in selecting the best call for the joint hands 
of partners and in bidding this best call to its limit of 
safety. A bid must show one of two things — ^the best 
call, or general assistance for partner's best call. In- 
formatory bids are utilized to show unusual general 
assistance by using bids of a character which are not 
used to show decided preference for a particular call. 
They are made on strength as great as many fine 
players consider sufficient warrant for making opening 
bids, without the precaution of letting their partner 
know that they are merely informatory. The old idea 
of an informatory bid was to show a suit stopped. 
Perhaps they were made on only an ace, perhaps on 
the king and queen. They merely showed "a sure 
trick" in the suit bid. They should show the suit 
surely stopped, and 3 probable tricks as a minimxmi. 

63 



Partner's bid is later advanced i-trick for each trick 
over three that the informatory bidder can furnish 
in the chosen best call. It is very simple and very 
definite. 

Chances to win game are worth moderate risks. In- 
formatory bids, used as advocated here, involve very 
small risks — about i chance in 50. Informatory bids 
often enable heavy scores to be made both by enabling 
the best final call to be made, and also by enabling a 
partner more frequently and more safely to double 
opposing bids. He can do this by the knowledge he 
possesses of what tricks the informatory bidder can 
probably win. This is a very important feature of a 
scientifically played game. 

Some players admit that clubs should be bid on 
strength without length, but they inconsistently de- 
cline to admit the same of the diamond suit, although 
both suits require an equal number of tricks to go game. 
There are 23 opportunities to bid diamonds on 3 or 4 
tricks to II chances to do so if they wait for a 5 -trick 
hand to give an informatory bid. They forget that 
the informatory bid doubles their partner's chances to 
bid properly while it involves a 2-per-cent. chance of 
being left in and defeated. A player afraid to accept 
such odds is out of place at the Auction table. Another 
thing most players overlook is the power medium cards 
have to win tricks in the hands of the player who 
declares, by combining the card strength of his own 
hand with dummy's. This strength cannot be counted 
in advance, but it averages to be worth at least one 
more trick to the declarer's side than to the adver- 
saries' hands, because the latter cannot utilize it. 

64 



Although you should not attempt to count in the ad- 
vantage of playing the two hands in estimating your 
tricks, still it exists, and is an added reason why in- 
formatory bids on short suits are less dangerous than 
they may appear to the novice. 

No trumps should not ordinarily be bid over a pre- 
vious bid in a suit unless you have that suit stopped. 
There are 2 in 3 chances that your partner can stop 
an adverse suit which you lack. If you have two or 
three small cards in it, your partner has only about 
even chances to stop that suit. If j^ou bid over two 
suits like the latter, he has only about i in 4 chances 
to stop them both. 



INFORMATORY BIDS 

Chief Essentials: 

Bids of 2-Spades always, i-Club and i-Diamond 
usually, are informatory and mean: "Partner, I have 
the suit I bid surely stopped, and a hand probably 
worth at least 3 tricks on any call you choose to make." 

A bid of I -Heart frequently means: "Partner, I 
have hearts surely stopped. My hand is probably 
worth at least 3 tricks on any call you make, or 4 
tricks if left in." This is informatory, since it does 
not merely seek a contract, but if the bid holds there 
are 11 in 19 chances to win at least the odd. 

Bids of 3 -Spades are always informatory, and mean : 
"Partner, I have the suit surely stopped, and a hand 
probably good for at least 5 tricks on any declaration 
you prefer." 

Three-spade bids cannot often be made, as they show 
5 tricks' help for partner. If spades are set up, this 
bid cannot be made, because a set-up spade suit calls 
for a bid of at least i-Royal. The 3-Spade bid can 
be made to show two or three tricks in a short spade 
suit, with two or three tricks in another short suit, 
five tricks in all, as follows: 

66 



Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamo7tds 


Spades 


9-8-6-4 


A-K 


7-5-3-2 


A-K-Q 


J-7-5-2 


A-K-Q 


10-6-5-3 


A-K 


10-8-3 


6-5-3-2 


A-K-Q 


A-Q-J 



It is a good opening bid, as it allows your partner to 
bid heavily on his best suit. It is also a good bid in 
second place, over i-Club, but i -Royal can be bid 
over i-Diamond or i-Heart with the first hand shown. 
The 3-Spade bid is useless in third or fourth place, 
whether partner has bid or passed. One objection to 
bidding i -Royal even on the first hand is the shortness 
of the spade suit. The hand contains 4 losing cards in 
each red suit, and opponents may start a cross ruff, or 
one may lead winning hearts and diamonds while the 
other discards clubs. The same is true to a lesser 
extent on the question of the dealer bidding i-Club on 
the second hand, as i-Club has less chance of standing 
than I -Royal. A bid of i-Club fools your partner 
into believing you cannot give him the unusual assist- 
ance you possess, while a bid of i -Royal practically 
asks him not to disturb your bid unless he can win at 
least three tricks more on his call than on yours. A 
bid of no trump would be preferable to bidding either 
in clubs or royals ; but, all things considered, the open- 
ing 3 -Spade bid is best of all. The situation is made 
very clear, and your partner can take 3^ou out of your 
bid if able to win even two tricks at royals, hearts, 
diamonds, or three tricks at clubs. The chances that. 
he cannot win even two tricks on some call are only 
I in 44, not to mention the chances that one opponent 
will prefer to outbid you, rather than leave you in. 
6 '67 



The only sure stops to a suit which will ordinarily be 
apt also to win tricks are either the ace, or king and 
queen, or king, jack, and lo, or sometimes the queen, 
jack, and lo. 

Your partner must never expect to utilize your card 
for 3 tricks at his own choice of trumps unless he holds 
at least 5 trumps, and 6 trumps are better. It is fre- 
quently necessary to exhaust opponents of trtmips be- 
fore side strength can be utilized. 

Examples of Informatory Bid Hands 







Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds 


Spades 


No. 


I 


Q-J-2 


A-8-6-3 


8-4 


K-Q-J-7 


No. 


2 


9-8 


A-K-8 


9-7-S-4-2 


A-6-3 


No. 


3 


J-5-4 


A-K-7-3 


K-6-2 


10-4-2 


No. 


4 


A-K 


10-8-6-2 


K-Q-9-3 


10-9-5 


No. 


5 


A-K-Q 


K-8-5-2 


J-10-4 


10-8-5 


No. 


6 


J-9-3 


A-K-Q-7 


6-5-2 


8-6-4 


No. 


7 


9-6-4 


10-7-3 


K-Q-J-6 


A-K-Q 


No. 


8 


10-8-6-2 


A-K-J 


J-9-3 


A-K-J 


No. 


9 


8-6-4 


K-7-2 


A-K-Q-J 


9-6-2 


No. 


10 


A-K-J-io 


9-6 


J- I 0-8-4 


K-8-6 


No. 


II 


A-K-J-2 


8-7-4 


9-5-2 


A-K-6 



Nos. I and 2 should be bid 2-Spades, since that is the 
lowest suit surely stopped while the hands are worth 
3 probable tricks on any call, provided at tnimps your 
partner has a long trump suit. No. i is also an open- 
ing no-trump bid; but the 2-Spade bid is safer, since 
you would like to know where the diamond and the 
remaining club strength lies. If your partner has 
strength in one of these suits he should bid i-Club or 
i-Diamond. If he is strong in both of them he can 

68 



bid I -No Trump. If your partner should bid i -Heart 
while you hold No. i, you could advance his bid to 
2-Hearts, because your hand will probably win 4 tricks 
on that make, and you have shown only 3 tricks in 
your original bid. 

No. 3 warrants a i-Club bid, and No. 4 a bid of 
i-Diamond. No. 5 calls for a bid of i -Heart under 
certain circumstances. 

No. 6 calls for i-Club bid. Nos. 7 and 8 are hands 
worth bids of 3-Spades. No. 7 can also be bid i-Dia- 
mond, and No. 8 can be bid i-Club; but the 3 -Spade 
bid is better. 

No. 9 is worth a bid of i -Diamond. 

Nos. 10 and 11 are good for a i-Heart bid. 

Many players would bid i-No Trump on such hands 
as are shown above, but the informatory bids given are 
safer, and will average to result better in finally bring- 
ing out the best bid for the combined hands. 

Details: 

The dealer has 4,350 in 10,000 chances (44 in 100 
chances) to make a legitimate opening bid of 10 or 
more points. Each other player has even chances 
to overcome a g-point bid. Therefore, bids lower than 
8 can be considered as probably informatory. A bid 
of i-Royal cannot be considered as informatory, since 
2-Spades or 3-Spades can be bid for that purpose. 
Neither can a bid of i - Heart be considered as 
purely informatory, although it indicates top cards 
held. 

69 



You have 1,532 in 10,000 chances (15 in 100 chances) 
in each of the suits to guarantee that you can surely 
stop the suit in which you bid, with a hand able to 
win not less than 3 tricks at no trumps, and the same 
on any trump make, provided your partner holds 
enough trumps to exhaust opponents. Such a hand 
can, however, ordinarily win 3 tricks, regardless of the 
length of partner's trump suit. The 3 -trick hands use 
bids 'of 2-Spades, i-Club, or i-Diamond. The only 
other available informatory bid amounting to less 
than 10 points is one of 3 -Spades. 

A 4-Spade bid would necessitate a weak royal hand, 
and is bid by some players when holding powerful 
cards in spades, and only four of that suit. It requests 
partner to bid i-Royal if he lacks an attacking hand. 
It is useful to a player who wishes his partner to 
play the hand, otherwise he had better bid 2-Spades 
on ability to win 3 tricks, or i -Royal if he is able to 
win 4 sure tricks. 

Other bids should be reserved for hands where the 
bidder believes that he can win those contracts, and 
where he does not want his partner to outbid him un- 
less his partner can do so on the strength of his own 
hand alone. 

In the majority of cases your hand is really of more 
use to a partner if you can win a trick or two outside 
your bidding suit than if the strength lies wholly in 
one suit. The probabilities are decidedly in favor of 
using the 3 -Spade bid to inform your partner: "I can 
win at least 5 tricks at no trumps or at trumps, pro- 
vided you can exhaust opponents' hands." 

Be sure that a partner understands your use of 
70 



informatory bids — especially the 3-Spade bid — before 
you start playing with him. 

One feature should be particularly noted concerning 
informatory bids. If they are made in a very short 
suit, more than half the time an opponent can suc- 
cessfully double them if he chooses. There is very 
little danger from this in most cases. First, because 
he can ordinarily make more by bidding on his own 
strong cards; and, next, because either your partner or 
his will be almost certain to change the bid. Usually, 
a suit in which you can bid because you have it stopped 
with honors will be long enough so that it is unlikely 
to be very long with an opponent; but sometimes you 
may hold a suit like this: 

A-3 or A-K or K-Q or K-J-io or A-K-Q 

Ordinarily, it is proper to show such a suit stopped, 
if your partner understands your bids and if the suit 
is of low value. If the suit happens to be hearts or 
royals, the informatory bid is unwarranted in nearly 
all cases. There are few rules which cannot be ad- 
vantageously broken in emergencies. 

Some players never make a heart bid except on 
ability to win 5 tricks. This is a mistake, as it some- 
times loses valuable chances to show assistance to 
your partner. It is better, however, to refrain from 
such bids unless your hand is good for 4 tricks at 
hearts if doubled and you are left in. Such a bid is 
informatory only in the sense that its bidder, is per- 
fectly willing to be taken out, since it is really bid on 
a weak attacking hand. The One bid shows tops. 

The minimum heart length also should be 4, for 
71 



safety's sake, for such a bid, or three, consisting of ace, 
king, and queen. If your partner has bid i-Spade, or 
if he has passed, it is usually best to refrain from such 
a bid, as it is unlikely to do any good. If. you deal, 
or if you can bid second over a bid of i-Spade, or if 
your partner has shown strength by an informatory 
bid and is evidently looking for no trumps, it is fairly 
safe to bid hearts for information, and it will pay in 
the long run to do so, provided your hand is fit for at- 
tack if left in. 

Hands suitable for these minimum bids in hearts 
are A-K-Q-X, or A-K-Q, or A-K-J-X, with an out- 
side king; A-K-io-X, or K-J-10-9, or A-J-io-X, or 
K-Q-J-X, if accompanied by two outside kings. If 
such hands are accompanied by outside aces or other 
sure stops, the bid would ordinarily be made in the 
lowest suit which is surely stopped, instead of being 
bid i-Heart. 

Many i -Heart bid hands approach closely to i-No 
Trump hands; some of them are quite as good for 
opening bids of i-No Trump, since they must have 
outside strength in one or more suits. 

Except in the spade suit bids of One in any call in- 
dicate "tops" (Ace, or King and Queen, or King, Jack, 
and 10, or in rare cases Queen, Jack, and 10). One bids 
do not request partner not to make another call, and 
he is at liberty to assume either that you want to re- 
main in or that you have better than ordinary assist- 
ance for another call better suited to his hand. If 
you cannot properly assist his call you must then over- 
call him. This makes it incumbent upon each player 
not to make misleading bids. Hands not worthy of 

72 



advancing a bid, if unable to give partner more than 
average assistance of 2 tricks, are generally unworthy 
of a bid at all. If you bid One on a heart hand able 
to win only 4 tricks on its own call, but incapable of 
winning more than 2 tricks on all other calls, you have 
bid imwisely, and your partner has a right to take you 
to task for it. But if you bid One on a heart hand 
able to win only 4 tricks if left in, or 3 tricks on any 
other possible call, it does not matter whether your 
partner assumes that you want to be left in and ad- 
vances your bid or whether he takes you out. He has 
no right to criticize your bid. It is true that if he ad- 
vances your bid on his ability to take 3 tricks at 
hearts that you have jointly contracted to win 8 tricks, 
whereas there are visible only 7 tricks in the two hands. 
Nevertheless, the declarer, through his advantageous 
position of playing both hands, averages to win i trick 
on his play, through finesse, cross-ruff, establishment 
of a long suit, or other scheme of play. Moreover, it 
is always better to go down i trick than to give op- 
ponents an even chance to go game. 

It is not justifiable to bid i -Heart on a hand like 
this, Hearts K-Q-X-X-X, without outside tricks, 
although you can win the odd 11 in 19 times. In 19 
average hands you would win 11 times at 8 points 
per trick, but you would lose 7 times at 50 (or 100 if 
doubled) points per trick. If the hand was Hearts 
A-K-X-X, and an outside A-K, the probable trick- 
taking value would be about the same; but in the first 
case you have nothing worth while to assist your 
partner or to resist an opposing call, in the second 
case you have something substantial in both those 

73 



cases, and have shown your partner his lead at no 
trumps when you can win 4 tricks. In the first case 
you have only 2 in 3 chances to win 2 tricks at no 
trumps on his lead to the suit you have shown. The 
additional general strength of the second hand makes 
it worth a bid, whereas the bid on the first hand would 
probably prove misleading. 

With only about i in 20 chances that some other 
player cannot legitimately outbid i-Heart, it would seem 
at first that purely informatory bids in that suit could 
as well be made as in any other. The first reason why 
this is untrue is the general ignorance of players as to 
the probabilities and the great advantage attending 
informatory bidding. The next reason is because it 
takes only one more trick to go game at hearts than at 
no trumps, and much less risk is attached to the heart 
call. Unless holding pronounced strength for another 
call, your partner will almost invariably leave you in 
hearts. The 54 chances in 100 which your informa- 
tory bid gives your partner prudently to bid no trump 
are accordingly lost, to say nothing of his chances to 
bid on a suit; and your two adversaries have each 43 
in 100 chances legitimately to take you out. The 
object of such a bid is to assist partner to the call best 
fitting joint hands. If such a call does not do much 
to block adversaries, but practically cuts your partner 
off from his best call, it is serving no useful purpose; 
and until it does do so it must be abandoned, as it 
incurs risk without proportionate gain. 



BUSINESS BIDS 

Chief Essentials: 

A bid of i-Diamond or i-Club may be a low busi- 
ness bid, but is usually informatory under any ordi- 
nary circumstances. One Heart is more apt than not 
to mean strictly business ; it is never purely informa- 
tory. Opening bids of 2-Clubs, 2-Diamonds, 2-Hearts, 
I -Royal (except in very rare cases), and i-No Trump 
always mean strictly business. 

Attacking hands warrant business bids. These hands 
have already been illustrated in a previous chapter. 

No trumps can be bid legitimately on any attacking 
hand, as already detailed, on the opening bid. It can 
be bid by any later player who has an attacking hand 
and guards in the suits bid by his opponents. If your 
partner bids on a suit, you can justly bid no trumps 
with two other guarded suits. It is ordinarily unwise 
to bid no trumps with two unguarded suits. 

Hearts, A-3; Clubs, K-Q-6; Diamonds, A-Q-J- 
4-2; Spades, 10-8-6 illustrates a no-trump bid upon a 
regular Bridge no trumper, as does the next hand. 

Hearts, A-7-4; Clubs, A-io-6-3 ; Diamonds, A-J-8; 
Spades, A-9-2. 

75 



It is more legitimate to bid on a hand like the fol- 
lowing without an ace than to declare on such a hand 
at Bridge, since honor values are* of less consequence 
at Auction. Every suit is safely stopped. 

Hearts, K-Q-2; Clubs, K-J-io; Diamonds, Q-J- 
10-9; Spades, K-Q-9. 

In an emergency (with opponents on their last game) 
the first hand below is worthy of an opening no-trump 
bid; while the second hand is sometimes worthy of 
the same with players who are bidding freely: 



Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds 


Spades 


9-8-5 


A-6-3 


K-J-io-9 


A- 1 0-4 


4-2 


A-K-Q-10-9 


J-9-8 


A-9-4 



Ordinarily, however, on the first hand 2-Spades can 
be bid, and on the latter bid i-Club on a free bid or 
2-Clubs on a forced bid. 

Five probable winners always justify a bid of 2- 
Royals, or 2-Hearts over i-No Trump, but only One 
should be bid on such hands unless forced. 

Six probable winners warrant opening bids of Two, 
at clubs, diamonds, hearts, or royals on hands unfit to 
assist or resist no trumps. 

Seven probable winners, regardless of their ability 
to assist at no trumps, obligates an opening bid of 
2-Royals or 2-Hearts. If your partner has a no-trump 
hand you can go game on your declaration about as 
surely as on his, and much less risk involved. As it 
takes 5 tricks to go game with diamonds and clubs, 
discretion must be employed in shutting out a partner 
by an opening bid of Two, even when you can win 
seven tricks yourself. 

76 



Details : 

Bids of 8 or more mean business. Such bids are 
justified only by sufficient strength probably to win, 
or by a dangerous score, or a desire to push a rash op- 
ponent's bid beyond the limit of safety. You have 
about I in 3 chances that a legitimate bid of i-No 
Trump will neither be overcalled nor doubled. 

If the strength outside your hand is evenly divided 
no great harm nor decided gain can result from a light 
no trumper. Unevenly divided strength will favor 
your partner only one-third of the time. Two-thirds 
of the time it will be against you. There are times 
when luck is with you, when very light no trumpers 
pay; but with the luck against your side they very 
decidedly do not pay. On the whole, with scientific 
opponents, they lose more than they win, besides ren- 
dering a game draggy and uninteresting. If both sides 
follow the tactics of bidding gossamer no trumpers, and 
of not overbidding opposing no' trumpers, a rubber 
often hobbles along for an hour or two. Interesting 
games come from each player bidding according to his 
cards, neither overbidding with weak cards (except in 
an emergency) nor hanging back. 

Owing to the ability of all four players to bid, a final 
declaration is generally capable of winning more tricks 
than an average Bridge call. On that account a large 
percentage of hands run out the game. In reality, 
with correct bidding, the average score on a winning 
hand should be close to 30 game points. There is little 
use in risking being stung on a light no trumper when 

77 



it is probable that your strength can better be em- 
ployed in supporting some strong make of your 
partner. 

A strong royal or heart make is safer than most no 
trumpers, and almost as sure to run out the game. 
The same can be said of diamonds with a score already 
2 or more, and of clubs with a score of 6 or more. 
Two bids on 5 probable winners gives 546 in 1,000 
chances to make good, but the losses are so out of pro- 
portion to the gains that it is not ordinarily justifiable 
to bid that way originally. It is, however, justifiable 
as a forced bid over i-No Trump, also as a desperation 
bid with a dangerous score. 

Two bids on 6 probable winners have 764 in 1,000 
chances to make good, and are entirely justifiable under 
any score conditions. 

Some players follow the unscientific system of bid- 
ding 2-Clubs or 2-Diamonds on a long-established 
suit, or one with ample re-entry to establish it. The 
proper opening bid is, however, i-Club or i-Diamond. 
This shows more than average assistance on any call 
that your partner wishes to make. You can advance 
his bid as much as your hand warrants. There are 
more chances that he can better bid trumps than no 
trumps, and for various reasons a very long side suit 
may not help his trump call very materially. This 
reserves the 2-Bid for occasions where you cannot 
help your partner as much as he can probably help 
you. Many comfortable scores are made in this way, 
while opponents are shut out from exchanging informa- 
tory bids. No-trump strength in your partner's hand 
cannot injure yours, and your joint cards stand better 

78 



chances of going game at trumps than at no trump, 
provided you utilize the shut-out bid wisely. 

Out of every 33 chances that your partner has to 
make a business bid, 27 are on 5 -trick hands, 5 are 
on 6-trick hands, and only i is on a hand worth 7 
tricks on his best call. Consequently you stand small 
chances of harming your partner when you shut him 
out on a hand worth a large number of tricks on your 
best call, but which cannot give other calls more than 
average assistance. 

To illustrate the advantage derived from the pro- 
tective bid we will take hands containing 7 diamonds. 
It is possible to deal 5,598,661,068 different ones. Of 
these 1,808,107,488 (or 32 per cent.) would have the 
diamonds neither established nor establishable through 
the re-entry cards held, but in each of these hands 6 
probable winning cards on a diamond call would be 
held, and where partner could probably assist the call 
to the extent of at least 2 tricks. To utilize the 
2-Diamond bid to show established or establishable 
suits wotild be to deprive the holder of 7 diamonds of 
32 per cent, of his chances to make his best bids, and 
ones which would be apt to go game whenever his 
partner held no-trump strength. On longer suits the 
mischief would be greater. Such curtailment of a 
partner's right to bid something which cannot often 
do harm, and which very often will yield a game, is 
neither logical nor profitable. The same is true of 
2-bids in clubs. 

A vital requisite to the success of any system of play 
is the intelligent co-operation of your partner. If he 
insists upon following a poorer system than the one 

79 



you prefer, it is better to yield to his desire and to 
follow that one consistently than it is to attempt to 
play your way while he plays his way. 

Although an opening bid of 2-Hearts can be properly 
made on 6 probable tricks, it is ordinarily better to bid 
only One, to allow your partner to go no trump or 
royals, if your hand will be of great assistance to him. 
The first hand below is probably worth at least 6 heart 
tricks, but is apt to be of no value at no trumps, so 
a shut-out bid of Two had better be made at once. If 
your partner has a no-trump hand, or one worth 3 
tricks' assistance, you can probably go game at hearts. 
The second hand can be bid One, since it will be of 
great assistance at no trumps. 



Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds 


Spades 


K-io-9-8-7-5-4-2 


10-3 


J-2 


6 


A-K-Q-J-8 


J-io-6 


A-J-3 


Q-io 



With a very reckless partner, the last hand had bet- 
ter be bid Two, in order to shut out a risky no trumper, 
and to avoid argument if you bid Two over his no- 
trump bid. If he has a hand really worth a no-trump 
bid you can go game on either call. 

Eight sure tricks gives 886 in 1,000 chances of win- 
ning 3 odd tricks or more, and, theoretically obligates 
an opening bid of Three. It is hardly necessary to 
bid so high on royals or hearts, since you will keep on 
going up anyway. If you have nothing in those suits 
and cannot help at no trumps, it is as well to bid 
3-Diamonds or 3-Clubs at once on 8 sure tricks. 

It might seem as if One might be bid on 8 sure tricks 
as well as to make the higher bid; but you can safely 

80 



go game if your partner has a no-trump hand, as his 
cards must yield you 3 tricks. 

If your partner bids i-Royal, and your bidding turn 
comes with a hand unable to assist him to the extent 
of two tricks, a take-out bid of Two should be made 
in a lower suit if your hand is worth 5 sure tricks at 
hearts, diamonds, or clubs. The same is true if you 
can assist your partner to the extent of the usual two 
probable tricks but hold only a singleton of his suit 
or none of his suit. In this case it is likely that one 
opponent holds as many as your partner of his suit. 
If he is especially strong he can bid Two over your 
warning bid. 

Take-out bids show partner the true situation, since 
you will not bid on a lower suit than he has imless 
you can probably make your contract but cannot help 
his contract by 2 tricks, or unless you are very short 
in his suit, so that your bid is apt to turn out better 
than his bid. If short in your partner's suit but strong 
in the other three suits, you can bid i-No Trump 
when lacking a safer suit bid. 

If your partner bids i-Heart and you take him out 
with 2 Diamonds or 2-Clubs (because yoiu: hand is 
worth at least 5 tricks on yotir call and less than 2 
tricks on his call) , he has ordinarily no right to raise 
your bid imless his hand can assist you by at least 4 
possible tricks (because he must know that his bid has 
already been coimted as guaranteeing 3 probable tricks) . 

It is generally unwise to bid no trumps over a suit 
which you cannot stop. You can bid 3-Spades over 
i-Club, and thus ask your partner to bid no trumps 
in case he can stop the club suit. If the adverse suit 

81 



is royals, hearts, or diamonds, the spade bid is prac- 
tically eliminated. A dangerous score and a good, 
strong no-trump hand, even if weak in the adverse 
siut, justifies the risk of bidding no trumps. 

Even with a safe score (adversaries' score so low that 
they cannot go game on the hand), if your hand is 
evenly divided between the suits you can go no trumps 
over an adverse suit bid, even if you cannot stop that 
suit, provided your hand is very strong in the other 3 
suits, so that it is good for at least 7 tricks. With 
ordinary help from your partner, and the probability 
that he can stop the adverse suit, you can go game. 
If the adversaries are very strong they will probably 
continue their suit bid, giving you a good chance to 
double them. 

If i-Heart has been bid, you should go no trumps on 
this hand: Hearts, J-9-5; Clubs, A-K-4; Diamonds, 
K-Q-10-9; Spades, A-K-Q. 

The chances are very much against your opponents 
being able to win 7 tricks against you at no trumps, 
and almost out of the question that they can success- 
fully bid 2-Hearts. 

Hands like above are comparatively rare, and do 
not nullify the general rtile not to bid no trumps over 
an adverse suit unless you can stop that suit at least 
once, especially if your suits differ much in length. In 
the latter case you can more safely bid your best suit. 

Third-hand bids, when partner has bid i-Spade, 
must usually be confined to business bids, and caution 
must be used in advancing them when over called. 

Fourth-hand bids, when partner has passed a i- 
Spade bid, must also be made cautiously. If no ad- 

82 



verse bid probably able to win the game has been made, 
it is best to pass with a hand requiring over 3 tricks' 
assistance from your partner to go game. 

Bids of One by your partner, which may be either 
informatory or business, can be assumed to be the 
former if you desire to change the suit, and the latter 
if you want to raise his bid. If you bid i-No Trump 
on the assumption that his bid is purely informatory, 
he can raise it if he really means business and cannot 
properly assist your bid. 



PROTECTIVE BIDS 

Chief Essentials: 

One-Spade bids and take-out bids are made for pro- 
tection. In the ordinary sense they are neither in- 
formatory nor business bids. 

The laws of Auction Bridge limit the loss of a bidder 
of i-Spade to loo points, regardless of the number of 
tricks he loses, even if he is doubled, provided he does 
not redouble. Consequently, i-Spade is the regula- 
tion opening bid on all non-attacking hands wherein 
no suit contains an absolute stop, with 3 general 
tricks. 

When you hold a worthless hand it is better to take 
your partner out of a bid of 2-Spades by bidding 
i-Royal than allow him to be left in on his opening bid. 
It is, however, impossible for partner to detect that 
your bid of i-Royal means utter weakness instead of 
strength. On this account many players bid 3 -Spades 
over 2-Spades, instead of i -Royal. It requests part- 
ner to select his own protective bid. 

A take-out bid of 2-Royals, 2-Hearts, 2-Diamonds, 
or 2-Clubs is made over partner's i-No Trump bid 
when you cannot probably help his no-trump bid 

84 



as much as his no-trump hand can help your suit 
bid. 

If you have a long suit of low trumps, you can prob- 
ably utilize your partner's strength as dummy to 
within one trick of what he could win with it as de- 
clarer. If you can win two tricks more with your 
cards on your trump bid than you could help your 
partner at no trumps, the final result will be the same 
in either case, because you make a gain of one trick 
by the change of call, but you have at the same time 
contracted to win one trick more. If, however, your 
hand at your selected trump is probably worth three 
tricks more than it is worth on what your partner 
bids, you will probably gain one trick by overbidding 
his no trumper. 

The following hands should be utilized on take-out 
bids, if your partner bids i-No Trump: 

Hearts Clubs Diamond Spades 
9-8-7-6-4-2 J-2 9-5-3 10-8 
10-9-8-5-4-2 9-8-3 10-7-4-2 



7-3 8-7 Q-io-8-6-5-2 J-7-5 

9-6-4-2 Q A-K-ic^8- 

6-5-4-2 
8 J-io-9-6-4-3-2 J-9-4 10-9 

With the first two hands bid 2-Hearts; bid 2-Dia- 
monds on the next; bid 2-Royals on the fourth hand; 
on the last hand bid 2-Clubs. If he happens to have 
a long suit of the kind you bid, it is probable that be- 
tween you a set-up suit of value will result. He can 
then bid 2-N0 Trumps if he has the other suits stopped, 
otherwise he can surrender the call to you. 

85 



Six or more cards of a suit ordinarily urge a take-out 
if your partner bids no trump. 

Details : 

A bid of i-Spade should ordinarily be made on such 
hands as the following, since they are not attacking 
hands, neither can they assist partner to the extent 
of three tricks on all five possible calls : 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

No. I J-8-6 Q-9-2 K-J-io-3 Q-8-4 

No. 2 A-K-4 10-7-5 Q-3-2 Q-8-6-2 

No. 3 K-io-7-6-4 K-io-6-3 4 8-7-5 

If your partner should bid i-No Trump and be over- 
called by 2-Diamonds, you could raise his bid to 2-N0 
Trumps with No. i, since you can surely stop dia- 
monds, and can perhaps assist him on the other suits. 
If his bid of i-Diamond should be overcalled by 
i-Heart, you can go 2-Diamonds with No. 2. If his 
i-Heart bid should be overcalled by 2-Diamonds, 
No. 3 warrants your bidding 2-Hearts. 

If your partner bids 2-Spades, and opponents bid 
I -Diamond with a considerable score, you could bid 
I-Heart with No. 3. If they then bid 2-Diamonds 
and your- partner says nothing, you can make a des- 
peration bid of 2-Hearts, not with the idea of actually 
winning it, but because the score demands the risk. 
Your probable score (if your partner can deliver what 
his bid promises) will be "one down." The possibility 
of losing 50 is preferable to the probability of oppo- 

86 



nents going game and rubber if you do not take the 
chance. 

If your partner bids an original no trump when you 
hold a hand probably worth at least 3 tricks more 
if you declare a tnmip than upon his no trumper, 
you had better make a take-out bid of Two, in order 
to disclose the situation. The following hands are il- 
lustrative of this principle: 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

K-io-9-8-6-3 9-7-4 Q 10-8-5 

6-3 A-8-7-5-4-3-2 8-5-4-2 

A-K-Q-6-4-2 4-2 9-5 J-7-4 

The first hand is probably worth 4 tricks at hearts 
and perhaps only i trick at no trumps. The second 
hand is probably good for 5 tricks at diamonds and 
possibly only i trick at no trumps. The third hand is 
probably worth 6 tricks at hearts or at no trumps. In 
this case the bid is made because you can probably 
go game at hearts, while he may have another bad 
suit which will defeat him at no trumps. 

In each case you probably have sufficient trumps to 
exhaust opponents, and can then utilize your partner's 
hand as if it were no trumps. His hand shoiild aver- 
age to yield 4 tricks, or else he could not bid no 
trumps. 

The probable result of this first hand on your take- 
out is to fulfil your contract; on his bid, i-down. 

The probable result of your bid on the second hand 
is to win I -over trick; on his hand it is to go i-down. 

The third hand will probably result in game on 
either call, but 2-Hearts is the safer bid. 

87 



If he is well guarded in all suits, and happens to hold 
a long suit in common with you, he can bid 2-N0 
Trumps, and nobody will be hurt. In any event, 
your warning bid gives him a chance to retreat from a 
possible dangerous position, or assures him of help 
with the long suit in common. It is for him to choose 
what he will do. 

That a take-out bid of Two should be made by any 
one on five to a jack and nothing else over partner's 
bid of I -No Trump may seem surprising. 

The mathematical probabilities of both bids are alike 
— two down. The advantage claimed for the take-out 
in this case is not to win more, but to show partner the 
real situation. The take-out enables the original 
bidder to let it stand or to bid 2-N0 Trumps. Each 
individual case of this kind would have to be handled 
according to the cards held by the i-No Trump bidder. 
The Two bid should warn him that partner's hand is 
probably worth three tricks more on the suit bid than 
at no trumps. In the last case cited it is worth 11 in 
19 times two tricks more at trumps than at no trumps 
and the bid is accordingly misleading. A take-out 
bid from weakness should never be made on less than 
five to queen or six to a lower card. In fact, five to a 
queen is about as likely to help at no trumps as it is 
to win three tricks at trumps, while five to a king or 
ace are quite as apt to help partner's no trumper as 
they are to fulfil a contract of two. 

Only 25 in 79 times will a 5-card suit be able to win 
two more tricks at trumps than it can at no trumps, 
while the former bid requires at least one more trick 
to go game in case the two hands combine perfectly 



on the suit bid. Your partner's hand averages to be 
worth one trick less when exposed than when it is 
concealed. Doubles are more frequently made of 
2-bids than of i-bids. The average number of tricks- 
down is identical on the two styles of bid. There is 
insufficient reward for such successful take-out bids, 
and too great penalties when they fail. They cannot 
logically be employed by players who seek safe bids. 

With your strength massed in a single suit which 
has over 5 cards you can bid Three instead of Two (on 
ability to win 6 tricks) over your partner's no trump, 
but only when you hold 4 heart or royal honors, and 
consequently desire the high honor score. Unless your 
partner holds an honor score of 100 for aces he should 
never disregard your take-out bid of Three. At love 
score you should be able to win 7 tricks to make 
properly such a bid for club or diamond honor score. 



SUPPORTING BIDS 

Chief Essentials: 

Your partner counts on you for two tricks assistance 
before you bid. You cannot raise his bid unless you 
can give him at least one more trick than he expects 
to find. If you have shown him three tricks gen- 
eral assistance by an informatory bid, you cannot 
raise his bid unless your hand is worth four tricks on 
his call. 

If your partner gives an informatory bid of 2-Spades 
he shows only 3 tricks, but his hand is probably good 
for 4 or 5 tricks, if played at spades or royals. You 
can raise such a bid to 2-Royals when your hand is 
probably worth 4 tricks on his call and not worth a 
bid on anything else. 

Do not figure a long line of low trumps as worth any- 
thing to your partner beyond the tricks they can win 
through ruffing your very short suits (a void suit can 
probably be ruffed twice, a singleton side suit offers one 
ruff, a doubleton side suit offers only a doubtful chance 
to ruff at all). Figure top trump honors (ace, king, and 
queen) as each worth a trick, directly or indirectly; 
so also is a sure stop to adversaries' best suit. Each 

90 



ace and protected king of side suits is worth a trick, 
and a combined ace-queen is probably worth 2 tricks, 
unless in a very long side suit. An established suit 
and several small trumps are apt to be worth a trick 
for each card of the set-up suit, but an established 
stdt in a "chicane hand" (one without a trump) can- 
not be reckoned to be worth over 2 tricks, since so 
many adverse trumps are liable to be held. 

The following hands are worth a supporting heart 
bid: 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

A-2 A-K-9-6 10-8-7-4 J-3-2 

6-4-3 K-Q-7-3 Q-9-7-6-5-3 

Q-9-6-4 K-4-2 A-9-5 J-8-4 

Q-J-10-4 7-5-3 9-8-6 A- I 0-7 

J-io-6-3-2 10-5-4-3 9-8-6-5 

7-5-4-3 9-6 J-6-2 A-K-Q-J 



The following hands cannot properly advance the 
heart bid: 



Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds 


Spades 


10-8-6-3 


J-7-4 


A-K-8 


10-7-3 


9-7-6-4-2 


A-6-S 


9-3 


J-8-5 


J-9-8-6-5-2 


Q-3 


8-6 


10-9-6 




A-K-Q-J 


10-7-5-4-2 


8-7-5-3 






K-9~7-6-2 


K-8-6-3 


K- 1 0-9-4 



Details: 

Suppose the declarer wins a 2-Heart bid, his partner 
having supported his weak bid of One, and the hands 
for his side are : 

91 





Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds Spades 


Declarer 


A-K-J-7-5 


10-6-3 


J-9-4 Q-2 


Dummy 


Q- 1 0-9-6-4 


J-8-5 


8-6-2 K-4 



The best they can hope for is to be 2-down. They 
must lose 3 tricks each in clubs and diamonds and 
I trick in spades. The declarer has the right to esti- 
mate his hand at 4 tricks, and will average to win 
that nimiber of tricks. The error comes because they 
each count 2 tricks for extra cards in trumps. If one 
of them had a missing suit, or if both were short-suited 
differently, these extra trumps could be used, but under 
the circumstances dummy's hand is not worth over 
the usual two tricks. 

Had the hands been divided this way, the contract 
could probably be made: 





Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds 


Spades 


Declarer 


A-K-j-7-5 


J-io-6-3 


J-9 


Q-2 


Dummy 


Q- I 0-9-6-4 


8-5 


8-6-4-2 


K-4 



Only 2 tricks each in clubs and diamonds need be 
lost, and i trick in spades. 

Again, suppose the hands to have been divided this 
way: 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

Declarer A-K-J-7-5 J-io-8-6-3 K-Q-2 

Dummy Q- 10-9-6-4 5 J-9-8-6-4-2 4 

If the clubs are not opened until after dummy has 
the chance to discard his singleton on declarer's winning 
spade, it is possible for a little slam to be made. The 
probable result is, however, that the declarer will take 

92 



9 or lo tricks, depending upon the way spades lie and 
are opened. 

It is, of course, a fact that any 13 cards are theoreti- 
cally as likely to be found in a hand as any other 13 
cards. That refers only to the particular cards held. 
It does not refer to the species of hand held. We have 
three distinct varieties of hands above, and they do 
not occur with equal frequency. A hand divided among 
the four suits in a way to hold in them 5-3-3-2 cards, 
respectively, occurs on an average 246 times in the 
same number of deals that one divided 5-4-2-2 will 
occur 168 times, or a hand divided 5-5T3-0 occur 14 
times, or a hand divided 6-5-1-1 occur 11 times. 
Ignorance of this fact, that certain species of hands are 
common while others are rare, has caused many sup- 
porters of erroneous theories to bolster them up by il- 
lustrative hands of rare occurrence. As already stated, 
probabilities, not possibilities, should gmde your play. 

Just as the general rule is not to bid no trump over 
a suit bid unless you have a probable stop to the suit, 
so you should ordinarily refrain from supporting your 
partner's no tnmiper over an adverse subsequent suit 
bid unless you can surely stop that suit. If its only 
bidder plays before you do, a well-guarded king or 
queen may answer; but if he plays after you do, so that 
your hand will be led through, a sure stop should 
ordinarily be held. 

Under safe conditions of score, a stop to the adverse 
suit, with a total of 3 tricks' assistance, is necessary 
for a supporting bid at no trumps. Under bad score 
conditions the certain stop to the adverse suit bid, 
even if only one other trick is held, is sufficient to war- 

93 



rant an advance. With anything weaker it is best to 
let the original no-trump bidder decide what he 
will do. 

Under ordinary score conditions it is sometimes 
justifiable to support your partner's no-trump bid 
when you cannot stop a suit bid against him. Circum- 
stances tending to warrant such a course are : a partner 
who does not bid no trumps on shadows ; a hand evenly 
divided between suits, so that it is probable that the 
suit-bidder has not an excessively long suit; the cards 
in hand apt to be worth 4 tricks at no trumps. Your 
partner must have cards which he believes are worth 
at least 4 or 5 tricks to have bid no trumps originally. 
The advantage of his position should give you the con- 
tract under the circumstances. While such legitimate 
supporting bids are of rare occurrence, they do occur, 
as shown in the following case:. 

The declarer's bid is i-No Trump on : 
Hearts, 8-6-3; Clubs, Q-J-9; Diamonds, A-7-4; 
Spades, A-K-Q-6. 
The next player goes 2-Hearts on: 
Hearts, A-K-Q-J ; Clubs, A-6-2 ; Diamonds, 8-3-2 ; 
Spades, 7-5-4. 
You can bid 2 -No Trumps with: 
Hearts, 10-9-7; Clubs, K-8-7; Diamonds, K-Q-J; 
Spades, J- 10-9-8. 

Judging from your own cards alone, you are apt to 
win a trick in clubs, at least 2 tricks in diamonds, and 
a trick in spades if it goes around sufficiently often. It 
is possible (before you know what others hold) that 
your hearts will either win a trick or enable your 
partner to do so. 

94 



Strong reasons for advancing your partner's trump 
bid are found in all hands worth an informatory bid. 
Aside from a chance to ruff, and honors in your part- 
ner's trump suit, a hand not worth an informatory bid 
is not suitable for a supporting bid. 



INTERPRETING BIDS 

Chief Essentials: 

OPENING BIDS 

It is necessary to recognize instantly the probable 
meaning of bids made by other players, as well as to 
make correctly your own bids. 

One Spade indicates inability to stop surely any suit 
and assist partner's call with 3 tricks. 

Two Spades, i-Club, i-Diamond, and i-Heart can 
be assumed to show the suit named surely stopped, 
and at least 3 tricks' assistance at no trumps. If the 
bid turns out to mean only business, that fact will be 
shown by its bidder increasing it over your bid. Any 
of these bids except 2 -Spades may, of course, be made 
on hands able to win the odd if left in. Properly bid, 
I -Heart hands can win a minimum of 4 tricks if left in; 
but the others cannot be counted on to win over 3 tricks. 

Three-Spade bids announce hands good for 5 tricks 
at no trumps. They indicate two short solid suits, one 
of which is spades. 

Royal bids always mean business. They show a 
probable desire to be let alone, but do not request this 
on a bid of i-Royal. 

All 2 -bids, except in spades, warn partner to let 
the bid alone, as the hand cannot be played to ad- 
vantage on any other call, or else its bidder expects to 

96 



go game. Higher suit bids still more emphatically 
request partner not to meddle. 

One-No Trump bids, more than all others combined, 
differ with the individual player. They may mean 
anything from a mere suspicion of strength in two suits 
up to a slam hand. If you can win at least three more 
tricks on an attacking hand in royals or hearts, or, with 
a partner who never bids very weak no trumps, four 
more tricks on such a hand in diamonds or clubs than 
you can assist at no trumps, it is best to bid Two in 
your suit over your partner's i-No Trump. If his 
no trump is weak, you have saved the situation; if he 
is strong you can go game as surely as he can. 

OTHER ORIGINAL BIDS 

Estimate "free bids" (2-Spades over i-Spade; 
i-Club over i-Spade or 2-Spades; i-Diamond over 
I -Spade or 2-Spades or i-Club ; i -Heart over any bid 
of less than 8 points; i -Royal or i-No Tnimp over 
any lesser call) — ^by any bidder, subsequent to the 
dealer — as if made on the opening bid. 

Bids of Two or Three are also free bids whenever a lower 
bid in the suit named would have cleared all previous bids 
(2-Clubs over i-Spade ; 3-Diamonds over 2-Clubs, etc.) . 

Bids of Two or Three to beat a previous bid (as 
3-Spades over i-Club; 2-Clubs over i-Heart) must 
be viewed as "forced bids," and calculated as showing 
the same strength as a free bid of one less trick. If 
made over informatory bids, they are classed as in- 
formatory, but must show a willingness to be left in 
if made over business bids. 

Illustrations follow of proper opening bids. 
97 



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opening bids of 3-Diamonds, 3-Hearts, or 3-Royals 
can be made on the same strength as on opening bids 
of 3-Clubs. 

Details : 

OPENING BIDS 

Spades 
i-Spade Bid 

Ordinarily shows a hand incapable of either an in- 
formatory or supporting bid. It must be viewed as a 
protective bid, which desires the advantage of a limited 
loss if left in. It may denote a wholly impotent hand, 
like No. I, or one capable of giving the average assist- 
ance of 2 tricks, like No. 2. On a particular declara- 
tion (say Clubs) it may be capable of a supporting 
bid, like No. 3. It may denote a hand lacking general 
assisting cards (aces and kings), but capable of a red 
bid on the second round on length of suit, like No. 4. 
It is better to bid i -Heart on such a hand, and go 
Two if partner bids No Trump. 

Hearts 
No. I 9-7-6-4 
No. 2 8-5-2 
No. 3 6-4-3-2 
No. 4 J- 1 0-9- 7-6- 5-3- 2 Q-8 10-4 8 

Just because a prudent partner has bid i -Spade 
should not prevent your giving a strong informatory 
bid, although the chances are greatly against his being 
able to give a later business bid. Weak no trumps 

100 



Clubs 


Diamonds Spades 


10-8-3 


8-4-3 8-7-2 


J-6-4 
J-io-9-7-5 


A-5-2 A-8-6-3 
J-8-5-2 



should be avoided, however, as it is almost certain 
that he cannot assist much on that call. 

2-Spade Bid 

An informatory bid, showing assistance probably- 
worth at least 3 tricks at no trumps, or at any trump 
declaration, provided the declarer has a trump suit 
sufficiently long to exhaust opponents. The bid shows 
the spade suit stopped by either the ace, or king and 
queen, or king, jack, and 10, or queen, jack, and 10. 
The chances in 10,000 to hold each are: 

Ace, 2,500; K-Q, 588; K-J-io, 129; Q-J-io, 129— Total 
3,346 

j-Spade Bid 

An informatory bid showing that suit surely stopped, 
as above, and cards probably worth at least 5 tricks. 
This bid cannot be made on a long set-up suit without 
outside cards, since i-Royal would be its proper bid. 
It indicates two short solid suits. • 

Clubs 
i-Club Bid 

Either an informatory bid, showing that suit stopped, 
and general assistance of 3 tricks, similar to the 2 -Spade 
bid, or else a low business bid. 

2-Club Bid 

Always a business bid, showing a hand good for at 
least 6 tricks, and probably more. It shows a hand 
worth 6 tricks at clubs and otherwise worthless, or 



else it shows a hand probably capable of going game. 
In either event no ordinary hand justifies a partner in 
changing the bid. 

j-Club Bid 

A business bid, showing an intention to play the hand 
at clubs. At any score it may show a hand worth at 
least 8 tricks at clubs and otherwise worthless. At a 
score of 1 2 or more it may show a hand worth 8 tricks 
at clubs, regardless of its value on other calls. At a 
score lower than 1 2 it may show a hand worth 9 tricks 
at clubs, whether or not it can assist another call. 

Diamonds 
i-Diamond Bid 

Informatory or weak business bid, similar to i-Club ; 
neither the diamond nor the club suit permits of dif- 
ferentiating between a value of 3 and 5 probable tricks. 

2-Diamond Bid 

A ^)usiness bid, showing a hand worth at least 6 
tricks on that call, similar to the 2-Club bid. As the 
strength may lie largely in low trumps, it is un- 
wise to take out a partner from a shut-out bid unless 
yotir hand is surely worth 6 hearts or 7 clubs, and not 
worth 2 tricks at diamonds. If the hand can help on 
another bid to the extent of 3 tricks, this bid should 
not be made with less than 7 sure tricks at diamonds 
unless the score is 16 or more. 

j-Diamond Bid 

A shut-out bid showing at least 8 tricks at diamonds. 
Made to cut off opposing bids, also to warn partner 



not to interfere, except on a certainty of something 
better. If successful, it can go game from a score of 
9 or more. 

Hearts 
i-Heart Bid 

Generally indicates sufficient strength to win the 
odd with ordinary assistance from partner, if left in, 
and also high cards which will be useful on another 
call if taken out. 

Sometimes it is made on a hand like this: 

Hearts, K-J-io-7-5-4; Clubs, — ; Diamonds, 10; 
Spades, A-J-io-8-6-3. 

This hand is equally good at either hearts or royals, 
but the bid is made in the lower suit to enable partner 
to bid the higher suit if he can. If an adversary should 
venture much on the royal suit, an excellent oppor- 
tunity to double would be afforded. 

If the dealer bids i-Club, your partner's second- 
hand bid of I -Heart may be made on a hand lacking 
only a stop to the clubs to bid i-No Trump, as fol- 
lows: 

Hearts, A-Q-J-9; Clubs, 6-2; Diamonds, K-J-8; 
Spades, K- 10-9-7. 

The hand is rather weak, and scarcely sufficiently 
evenly divided in suit lengths to risk i-No Trump. 

Much experience at the table with sound bidders, 
and a partner who closely observes the conventions in 
bidding, are necessary to interpret correctly the later 
bids made, as the bidding goes around the table. 

Under ordinary conditions the dealer's (or other 
player's) opening bid should never be made, as is 

103 



frequently the case, on hands in the heart suit like 
the§e: 

A-K-Q-X, and no side-suit strength 

A-K-X-X, with I outside trick 

Q-X-X-X-X-X, without side strength— 
because they do not possess both ability to win the 
odd if left in, and more than ordinary assistance to 
partner's make if taken out. 

The following heart holdings warrant bids of One: 

A-K-Q-X-X, without other strength 

A-K-Q-X, with an outside trick 

A-K-X-X, with 2 outside tricks and opponents 
bidding the unguarded suit. 

K-Q-X-X-X-X, without other strength— 
because they either show hands upon which higher 
heart bids can be ventured if necessary or else they 
show the regulation hands, able to probably win the 
bid if left in, and offering better than ordinary help 
on partner's bid. 

One-Heart bids may also show hands like these: 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

No. J A-K-Q-J-io-6 Q-3-2 K-io-8 A 

Ko. 2 A-J-8-6-5-3-2 J-9-4 9-7-5 

No. 3 Q-io-9-7-6-4-3 Q-5 9-3-2 8 

No. I has fine help for no trumps, but hearts is safer, 
carries an honor score of 80 points, and requires only 
one more trick to go game. Nos. 2 and 3 will have 
to go 2-Hearts over partner's no trumps if bid. It 
is ordinarily as well either to bid Two originally or 
else pass. The bid of i -trick often causes misunder- 
standing and consequent bad feeling. 

104 



2-Heart Bid 

A shut-out bid like 2 -Diamonds. 

j-Heart Bid 

Very rarely advisable to make unless a hand holds 
9 sure tricks, which is almost out of the question. 
Two-Heart bids are sufficiently high. If made, it 
shows at least 8 tricks on that call. 

Royals 
i-Royal Bid 

Always means business (the informatory bid would 
be 2-Spades), but does not prohibit partner from bid- 
ding I -No Trump, or another suit better adapted to 
his hand. A bid of i -Royal shows a minimum ability 
to win 4 tricks and a maximum strength of 6 tricks, 
except in cases where a hand is also adapted to no 
trumps and its possessor is looking for a chance to 
"boost" and double another player. Ordinarily, the 
ability to win 7 sure tricks at royals obligates an 
opening bid of Two. 

2-Royal Bid 

A shut-out bid, like 2 -Hearts, 2 -Diamonds, or 

2 -Clubs. 

j-Royal Bid 

Only used in rare cases where some such circum- 
stance as a void suit renders it desirable to put a stop 
to all bidding before the adversaries can exchange 
information if the hand can go game. 

los 



On a hand like this 3-Royals had better be bid at 
once : 

Hearts, 8; Clubs, 6-4-2; Diamonds, — ; Spades, 
K-Q-J-9-8-6-5-3-2. 

The hand is liable to be worthless at no trumps. If 
adversaries happen to hold powerful red hands the bid- 
ding may soar to Five or Six, unless you open with a high 
shut-out bid. 

NO TRUMPS 
i-No Trump Bid 

This business bid shows a hand which cannot go 
game on any trump make without more than ordinary 
assistance from partner. It probably has no very long 
suit, and its strength is either scattered through three 
or four suits or lies mainly in clubs or diamonds. If 
those suits are good for six or seven tricks, it may 
have no royal or heart strength, especially if one of 
them is a set-up suit, like these: 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

No. I 9-6 A-K-Q-J-8 A-K-J-4 J-7 

No. 2 10-9-7 A-Q-J A-K-Q-J 8-4-3 

No. 3 A-J-io-6 A-K-Q-6-5 J-7-3-2 

No. 4 J-9-6-2 A-K-Q-J K-Q-J 10-8 

As an assisting hand to a trump call with plenty of 
trumps, your partner's bid of i-No Trump should mean 
not less than 4 tricks' assistance at any ordinary state 
of the score. 

OTHER ORIGINAL BIDS 

With the exception of the dealer, the players are 
never obliged to bid unless it best serves their purpose. 

106 



To correctly interpret their bids it is necessary to 
distinguish between free and forced bids. A free bid 
is one made in accordance with the cards held. A 
forced bid is one higher than cards demand, in order 
to outbid another player. A free bid is made when- 
ever the only previous bids are lower than the normal 
bid for the hand in question. A free bid is open to a 
hand calling for a i-Club bid only when the previous 
bid has been i-Spade or 2-Spades. If the previous 
bid has been 3-Spades, i-Diamond, or i-Heart, you 
cannot bid i-Club, but must choose between silence 
and a bid of 2 -Clubs. This particular 2 -Club bid is a 
forced bid — one probably higher than cards fully war- 
rant. It may be purely a weak business bid, and 
should be interpreted by your partner as probably the 
equivalent of a i-Club bid. All bids of a value equal 
to a forced bid in the suit named must be considered 
as probably forced bids. Thus 2 -Diamonds over 
2-Clubs or I -No Trump must be interpreted as prob- 
ably showing hands worth business bids of only i-Dia- 
mond, but must never be taken as indicating only 
i-Diamond informatory bids. A bid of 2-Spades over 
i-Spade is always a free bid, because i -Spade is purely 
from weakness and 2-Spades is the lowest bid used to 
show strength in that suit, although in most cases the 
double of i-Spade is safer and should be preferred to 
bidding 2-Spades. It is an excellent plan to bid 2- 
Spades instead of doubling, only when you hold 4 
spades, with high honors, in a hand lacking a minimum 
royal bid, but able to give unusual assistance on royals 
and the customary no-trump aid. 

All bids, unless forced higher than normal by those 
107 



previously made, can be interpreted precisely as if 
they were opening bids, with the one exception of the 
no-trump bid. Except in an emergency, no trumps 
bid over a previous suit bid means that the no-trump 
hand can look out for the suit bid, or else it means a 
hand made up of nearly equal suit lengths, with very 
unusual strength in three suits. In any event, if a 
bid of 2-Hearts, 2-Diamonds, or 2-Clubs is made over 
a partner's no trumper, which was bid after that ad- 
verse suit had been named, you must assume that he 
has that suit cared for, and you can raise his no-trump 
bid if you can assist him with at least 3 tricks, even if 
you have nothing in the adverse suit. If you have 
already given an informatory bid showing 3 tricks, 
you cannot ordinarily raise the no-trump bid. If the 
score is bad, your partner has probably considered it 
in bidding no trumps, and must make his own allow- 
ances. It is unsafe for both of you to take long 
chances. 

No trumps bid over two previous adverse suit bids 
must usually mean that a stop to both of them is held. 
If the score is bad on opponent's second game, it may 
mean that the no-trump bidder has only one of them 
surely stopped, but has a hand evenly divided as to 
suit lengths, and so assumes that no one has any very 
long suit. This is always a risky assumption, although 
the way the cards are ordinarily shuffled is apt to make 
all hands somewhat similar in suit lengths. 

To be able to bid Two over an adverse bid of One 
in the same call requires a hand upon which you would 
have gone Two on the opening bid as dealer. A double 
of an informatory bid will answer as well as bidding 

108 



Two, if you merely want to show your partner that 
you have a suit stopped and a hand good for 3 tricks. 
Never make a forced bid over a bid in the same suit; 
you cannot bid 2 -Clubs on a hand worth a probable 
5 tricks over an adverse bid of i-Club. If the adverse 
bid is business and your opponents cannot shift their 
bid to advantage, it is usually better to double them 
than to advance their bid. The double forces them to 
win more tricks than the advance would, although, on 
the other hand, the declarer's side can win one or two 
tricks more with the same cards than they could if 
you played dummy's cards in connection with your 
own as declarer. Unless great gain is to be seen 
through bidding Two over One or in doubling, it is 
better to remain silent, or to bid in another suit to 
induce your opponents to raise their bid. 

Quite a common thing is to have an adverse no- 
trump bid before your chance to make that same bid 
comes. With an established suit it is often best to say 
nothing, if you can make the opening lead. It is gen- 
erally foolish to double and let them escape to a strong 
suit . If strong especially in royals or hearts , you can bid 
a suit. If they go 2-N0 Trumps, you can then double, 
and run off your established suit. There are cases 
when it pays to bid 2-N0 Trumps over One, but these 
are rare. You may have a score of 10 and a no-trump 
hand almost certain to win two *'odd" at a time when 
i-No Trump is bid against you. It will then be bet- 
ter to bid 2 -No Trumps than to sting opponents for 
a small score. A case sometimes arises when you can- 
not be certain of winning such an increased contract, 
but where you prefer the risk to letting opponents 

109 



probably go game and rubber. Ordinarily, you must 
have stops in every suit, and one established suit, to 
make sure of your bid when bidding 2-N0 Trumps over 
One. Here is such a hand: 

Hearts, A-3; Clubs, K-Q; Diamonds, A-K-Q-J- 
10-7-3-2; Spades, A. 

Perhaps the original bidder has held: 

Hearts, K-Q-J; Clubs, A-J; Diamonds, 9-8-6; 
Spades, K-Q-J- 10-9. 

Of course you can go game on diamonds, but you 
can bid 2-N0 Trumps if you desire. If the long suit 
were royals or hearts instead of diamonds, it would 
be preferable to bid them. With the hand above, your 
best course would be to double i-No Trump. If they 
play it, your score will be very high. If they shift to 
royals, you can go 2 -No Trumps. 

It is a duty to take your partner out of a losing make 
only when it can be done safely. It is best to leave an 
opponent in a cheap make, incapable of going game, 
whether he will win or lose, unless the advantage to 
you is clear in making a bid. Your opponents may 
have expected you to bid, and are lying low with big 
hands, ready to double you or to go no trimip when 
you bid. If you refuse to bid and let them play the 
deal in spades, it will usually be best for you. 



PASSING 

Chief Essentials: 

One great requisite to success is to pass whenever 
you cannot clearly see a reason for bidding. Bluff bids 
and doubles can accomplish little except against poor 
bidders. Do not bid and run the chance of being left 
in with a hopeless contract on your hands when you 
know that your partner is weak. Do not double a bid 
that suits you, unless your partner can use the in- 
formation you convey, if the way is open for opponents 
to escape to a call less favorable to you. 

Details : 

A player's refusal to bid may^ arise from several 
causes : 

1. Because he has a hand worth not over two tricks. 

2. Because the previous bid best suits his hand. He may 
fear to double lest he drive its bidder to another and less 
favorable call. 

3. The pass may show a long, low suit, which could not 
assist on another call. The hand may be rather weak to bid 
before his partner has been heard from, and he fears to bid 
on the first round, lest he should be left in and find that his 
partner has no help. 

Ill 



4- The pass may denote a hand containing very valu- 
able assistance but without having a single suit absolutely 
stopped : 

Hearts, K-10-3; Clubs, Q-J-6; Diamonds, K-J-8; 
Spades, Q-i 0-9-6. 

It is true that the only practical absolute stops to a 
suit are: A, K-Q, K-J-io, Q-J-io. But there are 
various other stops which are almost as certain, which 
can be used in cases of emergency on first bids, or with 
even scores on any later bid in a suit not already called 
by an opponent, if the rest of the hand warrants it. 
The following combinations will nearly always stop a 
suit : 

K-J-9, K-J-8-7, Q-J-8-7, K-io-9-7, Q-io-9-7-5- 

It will certainly be a very unusual card distribution 
which will prevent such combinations from acting as 
stops. The great objection to many of them is that 
they cannot be depended upon to stop a suit quickly, 
and costly discards may have to be made by partner 
at no trumps, or re-entry may be lacking to utilize 
them. 

These objections apply in a lesser degree to the use 
of Q-J-io as a bidding stop. It permits two roiuids 
to be run off before the suit can be stopped. On the 
other hand, if a bid is permissible only in a suit headed 
by A or K-Q or K-J-io, emergencies arise when such 
restriction causes hardship and loss. If players use 
judgment in their selection of the time to risk a little 
more than ordinary, there can be no harm in the long 
run in the use of the near stops as given above, especial- 
ly those headed by the king. But, ordinarily, sticking 
to a good general rule (except in cases of real emergency) 



pays better than occasional gains through departure 
from the rule, in the confidence your partner can put 
in your bids. 

If your partner bids i-No Trump and the next 
player bids 2-Hearts or 2-Diamonds, you can go 2-N0 
Trumps on either an absolute or near stop to the ad- 
verse suit, provided the remainder of your hand con- 
tains at least two sure tricks in addition to the stop. 

If your partner's no trump is topped by the player 
at your left and your partner declines to advance his 
bid, you should have an absolute stop to the adverse 
suit, also a minimum of two other sure tricks, or else 
you should have a near stop and more than two other 
sure tricks. A risk should always be compensated by 
a hope of extra gain. This small risk is worth an added 
trick, unless the score is bad. A larger risk demands 
still greater chances of gain. This rule of taking risks 
proportionate to possible gains is important to remem- 
ber in various situations arising during the course of a 
game, such as risking a deep finesse to win the rubber, 
losing a trick on an even chance to win three later on, 
or even two when they mean saving the game. 

5. A refusal to outbid a business bid can come from lack 
of sufficient strength to do so safely. 

6. Failure to assist a partner may arise from weakness, 
or at no trumps it can come from inability to stop the adverse 
suit. 

7. Declining to raise a partner's bid may come from a be- 
lief that opponents will be badly stung if allowed to stay 
in. In such a case the one declining to assist may have a 
good hand, but he may believe it better to try to set the 
other side. 



DOUBLING AND REDOUBLING 

Chief Essentials: 

Expert doubling conveys valuable information to 
partner, enables heavy scores to be made against un- 
wise bidders, frightens timid players away from calls 
not wanted, and shows partner what suit to lead at no 
trumps. 

Scientific redoubling likewise imparts valuable in- 
formation to partner, heavily penalizes rash doubles, 
and scares inexperienced doublers into bidding instead 
of sticking to their doubles. 

Both doubling and redoubling are very important 
features of the bidding contest, and should be thorough- 
ly understood. Like all deadly weapons, they are dan- 
gerous in unskilled hands, and are most carefully used 
by those who best understand them. 

There are four distinct varieties of doubles : 

1. The "informatory double" of informatory bids is made 
to show a sure stop to the suit and 3 tricks' help to partner if 
he will make a business bid. 

2. The "business double" is made when able to defeat a 
business bid. 

3. The "blufE double" is merely intended to frighten the 
bidder into a call which the doubler really dreads less. 

114 



4. The "protective double" is part of "the club con- 
vention." It is a double of a no-trump bid by pone (player 
at declarer's right) when he holds a long set-up suit of clubs. 
It requests elder (player at declarer's left) to lead his highest 
club. This convention is fully discussed under "Conven- 
tional PlaySj" but is rarely employed unless an opening bid 
of 2-No Trumps or more has been made. 

There are three different sorts of redouble: 

1. The informatory redouble is made over an informatory 
double of spades to show partner that the redoubler has 
spades stopped and can assist his call to the extent of 3 
tricks. 

2. The business redouble is made when able to fulfil a 
doubled contract. 

3. The bluff redouble is made to frighten the doubler or 
his partner so that one of them will believe that the double 
was a mistake, and will accordingly bid instead of letting 
the redouble stand. 

Like the bluff bid, the bluff double and bluff redouble 
are more apt to do harm than good. They are some- 
times the only hope of escape from a serious loss, but 
are very seldom effective against sound bidders. 

The informatory double can be made by the second 
player, of the dealer's bid of i-Spade or 2-Spades 
on about the same hand on which he would have given 
an informatory bid if he had dealt. It cannot safely 
be done with other opening bids, since the bid may be 
purely informatory, or it may be a business bid. 

The only informatory redouble which can reasonably 

be made is when i-Spade has been bid by a notoriously 

cautious dealer, and has been doubled. Then the third 

player can redouble, if he has practically a no-trump 

9 IIS 



hand to encourage the dealer to make it no trumps, 
if the latter is at all guarded in the remaining three 
suits. 

Informatory doubles are useless under conditions 
prohibitive to informatory bids. It is useless, for 
example, to make this variety of double as fourth 
player, if the second player has passed, because the only 
object of this double is to show 3 tricks' assistance and 
a sure stop to the suit. The pass shows that your 
partner is not seeking help, but more probably is trust- 
ing that the weak bid will hold, because it could do less 
harm than anything else. 

Except for information, it is folly to double a weak 
bid which cannot possibly go game. Even if you can 
defeat it, the double is senseless. The probable result 
is a change of call which you quite likely cannot de- 
feat, and which may even lose you the game. 

The business double should be made only when you 
believe that the joint cards of your partner and your- 
self can prevent the fulfilment of a contract, and at the 
same time when you believe that your opponents can- 
not escape to a better call. If the second player, for 
example, doubles an opening bid of i-Club from great 
strength in that suit, having no help for a partner's 
no trump, he leaves open four other calls to which the 
bidder can escape. The second player's only hopes 
of success are either to remain silent or to bid 2 -Clubs, 
according to just what he holds. 

If your partner's bids and the cards you hold show 
that escape to a call less favorable to you is practically 
impossible, there are three things still to consider be- 
fore doubling: 

116 



1. Whether you can surely defeat the contract. 

2. If you can set the bidder back, will it pay you better 
than the best declaration open to you? 

3. Unless you can surely set the contract, view the score 
to see whether your double will enable the bidder to go game 
if he wins, where he could not do so without your double. 

■ A good general rule is not to double for business 
unless you can stand a redouble, either through strength 
in the call you double or because escape to another call 
is open to you if a redouble is made. 

A double discloses where strength lies, and reduces 
the doubler's winning chances by an average of about 
one trick, by causing leads through his hand to be 
made instead of part of them going through his partner, 
provided both opponents are bidding on the same call, 
or provided the doubler sits at declarer's right. 

If the declarer's partner has not bid, more especially 
if he has passed, a doubler sitting over the declarer 
can more freely count kings as sure tricks, trump 
tenaces as worth two tricks, meditim-sized trumps as 
worth tricks, and so on. If the doubler sits at de- 
clarer's right, or if both opponents have bid, tricks must 
be counted in a very conservative manner. The for- 
mer situation gives a favorable doubling position, the 
latter gives an unfavorable doubling position. 

In a favorable doubling position it is sufficient to 
hold enough reasonably sure tricks to win all outside 
of what the contract calls for, thus depending upon 
your partner for a single trick if you have not heard 
from him. If your partner has given a bid showing 
three tricks, you can count two of them. It is dan- 
gerous to count three of them unless you play both 

117 



hands. If the bidding contest between your hand and 
the declarer's has been very keen, and your partner has 
steadily passed, you cannot count on him for even a 
single trick. 

In an unfavorable doubling position at least one more 
trick than given above should be held by the doubler. 

If you are doubled, unless your partner has bid, you 
must not expect even a single trick's assistance from him 
when you consider whether you shall redouble. If the 
only doubt about redoubling involves a single trick, it 
is best not to redouble, if winning it redoubled would 
not change your chances to go game. If you are cer- 
tain to win within one of your contract, and see chances 
to win your contract, you can redouble if the added 
value of the redouble is needed to enable you to go game. 

Always most carefully review your strength before 
redoubling; locate mentally where intermediate cards 
of tenaces probably lie, where the aces of your king 
siiits are, whether side strength is apt to be ruffed; 
note suits that you can ruff on first or second rounds, 
the number of trumps against you, the chances that 
your partner holds a chicane hand, or a "bust." 

In choosing between doubling with a certainty of 
winning at least 300, and continuing a safe bid certain 
to go game, the former is preferable, but game is 
usually to be preferred to anything short of the 300. 

Details: 

Always consider what a bid means before doubling 
it. The protective bid of i-Spade is clear, so also is 

118 



the informatory bid of 2 -Spades, but i-Club or i-Dia- 
mond may be a weak business bid. Bids of i -Heart 
cannot be purely informatory, and it is unsafe to reckon 
them as meaning less than business. There are situa- 
tions, where your partner appears to desire a no trump, 
when an informatory double of a weak business bid 
can be advantageously made on a sure stop, and a hand 
capable of a business bid in that suit, even if probably 
unable to sustain the double. If sure that a bluff bid 
has been made, a double can be given on a hand worth 
only an informatory bid. Never make even a bluff 
double on a weaker hand, as it will be almost certain 
to fool your partner. 

To prudently double a 3 -Spade bid usually calls for 
a no-trump hand. The bidder's spade suit cannot be 
long, or i-Royal would have been bid. The strength 
must be divided between two short suits. An opening 
bid of I -No Trump would have been made if the five 
promised tricks lay in three suits, or in clubs and 
diamonds. 

If 3-Spades are bid by the second player over the 
dealer's opening bid of i-Club, it may show a perfect 
no-trump hand outside of the dealer's suit, and may be 
worth far more than five tricks. It is then an invita^ 
tion for partner to bid no trumps if he can stop the 
dealer's suit, otherwise to bid on his best suit. Four 
Spades can occasionally be bid over dealer's i -Diamond 
or i-Heart bid in similar manner; but 5-Spades bid 
over I -Royal would indicate that the bidder could not 
stop that suit or he would bid i-No Trump. Depart- 
ures from the rule not to bid on a suit unless you hold 
a sure stop are both dangerous and confusing. 

119 



In any event, the 3-Spade bid undertakes to win all 
but four tricks if allowed to stand. If it is an opening 
bid it can be doubled on a sure stop, ability to win 
four tricks if played, and a hand able to win three tricks 
on other calls. If the 3 -Spade bid has been made 
over partner's bid, showing three club tricks, it can be 
doubled on a sure stop and a hand good for three 
tricks. It is unwise to fool partner by doubling on 
less, although in the latter case it would be safe as far 
as being able to defeat a 3-Spade contract is concerned. 

Two-Club bids like 2-Diamonds, i-Heart, i-Royal^ 
and i-No Trump always call for business doubles or 
none at all. 

In most cases there is little in business doubles of 
bids lower than three. Three bids are sufficiently high, 
if made in high suits, to cut off safe escape, and are 
hard to win. 

Do not double i-No Trump on a set-up suit able to 
defeat it. At rare intervals you may hold a powerful 
no-trump hand, stopped in all suits, when the previous 
bidder goes i-No Trump. Instead of bidding 2 -No 
Trumps you can double (provided your partner under- 
stands it), as a request to bid his best call. Unless 
your partner has previously bid from some strength, 
or unless your own hand is certain to win 6 tricks if 
the double stands, the proceeding cannot be recom- 
mended. 

Doubles of high-trump bids, which have risen step 
by step, both partners bidding, can be doubled largely 
on side strength, but high original bids show such long 
trump suits as to probably render side strength im- 
potent. 

120 



I recently had a striking illustration of this latter 
point on the following hand: 

Hearts, A; Clubs, A-K-J-io; Diamonds, Q-J-io- 
9-8-6-4-3; Spades, none. 

I bid 3-Diamonds over i-Heart. The next player 
went 3-Hearts, and my partner passed. I raised to 
4-Diamonds, and so on until I had bid 5-Diamonds, 
when I was doubled. There were 2 in 3 chances that 
the queen of clubs either lay with my partner or on 
my right. There were also the chances that my part- 
ner could win a spade trick, and slight chance that he 
held the king of hearts or a missing honor in my suit. 
With only three tricks needed to defeat me, my op- 
ponents might be doubling on general principles. I 
took a sporting chance and redoubled. My partner 
held the queen of clubs, but absolutely nothing else of 
the least value. Spades were opened and ruffed; 
then I led trumps. The king of diamonds won, and 
hearts were led, through my ace. A second round of 
trumps and a ruff of their hearts left me in control, and 
the redoubled contract was won. The doubler had felt 
perfectly safe with the ace and king in his hand of 
both diamonds and spades, the diamonds absolutely 
certain of winning tricks, his partner bidding hearts, 
and clubs not located. 

The side winning the first leg of the rubber has 3 in 
4 chances to win the 250 honor points going with the 
rubber. If you lose the first game you have only i in 
4 chances to win the rubber. That is, the loss or gain 
of each game deducts or adds to your chances of win- 
ning the rubber i in 4 chances. The average value of 
a rubber is 400 points; but the difference to a player 



between winning and losing an average rubber is 800 
points. Hence winning a game averages to be worth 
200 points to you. Accordingly, winning anything over 
200 honor points averages to be better than winning 
a game. This is true even on the rubber game. 

Whenever you can set an opponent back 250 sure 
points or more, you should do so in preference to bid- 
ding on a hand capable of going game. 

It is safer to double or redouble a player who sits 
on your right than one sitting over you at your left. 

Do not double or redouble, even on a certainty, 
when there is a probable loophole for escape into an- 
other call less favorable to you. 

On the rubber game, in particular, doubling and re- 
doubling, except on certainties, should be made to 
score. 

A "free double" is when the bidder will win game 
on the undoubled contract. Somewhat greater liber- 
ties can be taken on a double under such conditions. 

It is proper to take your partner out of an informa- 
tory bid at any time. If he has been doubled, you can 
do so on a rather light hand. It is also right to take 
your partner out of an informatory double which has 
been redoubled, at considerable risk. It is not right 
to take a prudent partner out of a business bid which 
has been doubled, nor out of a redouble of his business 
double, unless you have almost a certainty of a better 
make and a game score to offer as a substitute. 

In questions of bid, double, and redouble the re- 
liability of the player himself has to be considered. 
Bluff in such matters often pays with many players: 
it occasionally pays with most players; it very rarely 

122 



indeed pays with really scientific bidders, because the 
latter stick to their system of bidding so closely (score 
emergency and personality of opponents duly credited) 
that they depend upon what they see in their own 
hand and upon what partner tells them, instead of 
being swayed by their opponents' acts. Against such 
players the bluffer has more chance of being hurt than 
he has of working his bluff. 

The personal equation enters largely into most 
Auction problems. You must be extra conservative 
with a partner who overbids his hand, discounting the 
strength which he announces and concealing a part 
of your own. A player who persists in raising his 
partner's bid on the strength of only one or two prob- 
able tricks is a nuisance and menace at any card-table. 
A bidder who habitually opens with i-No Trtimp bids, 
whether he has or has not a hand worth his bid, with 
the idea of shutting out others from that bid makes 
a most unsatisfactory candidate either as a partner 
or as an opponent. His partner can never tell whether 
to support his bid or to try and take him out. At one 
time his partner is blamed for not taking him out on 
a semblance of a bid, and the next time fault is found 
because he is taken out on a strong suit. 

When playing with reckless bidders it is best, when- 
ever possible, to shut out "piker calls" (weak bids 
and questionable doubles) by an original high bid. 

Some players dislike yielding a contract to another 
bidder. Against such players it is best to start with 
as high a bid as your hand allows, to try and shut them 
out from the start. If they once start bidding, it is 
legitimate to bid higher than ordinary against them, 

123 



as they are almost certain to overbid their hands, so 
that they can frequently be stung. 

"Bucket-shop bids" (those made regardless of prob- 
abilities, depending upon the player's luck for success) 
and ''policy-shop doubles" (where the doubler has 
dreamed the bid to which it will drive the one doubled) , 
like other forms of pure gambling, sometimes win. 
The odds are all against their votaries, however, who 
are certain to lose in the long run. 



SCORE AND HONOR VALUES 

Chief Essentials : 

It is unjustifiable to take even a slight risk to pre- 
vent opponents from winning a contract which is 
incapable of going game. You have nearly as good 
chances to win the game from "love" as they have 
from 28. 

It is better to lose 50 points (or even 100 if doubled) 
than to let opponents have the contract, if they can 
probably win the game. Unless the loss of the rubber 
is involved, the bidder of a losing contract must be 
tolerably sure of going within one trick of his bid. 
On the rubber game he can sometimes afford to risk 
a double on a possible loss of two tricks rather than sur- 
render a reasonable hope of winning the rubber. The 
reliability of the other players' bids, and whether op- 
ponents are prompt to double overbids, have to be con- 
sidered in risking set-backs. The proper system is for 
the original bidder of a suit to assume all responsibility 
for overbidding, and for his partner to stick to the rules 
prescribed for raising bids. If both players some- 
times overbid a trick or two, and again both are too 
conservative, they will undertake impossible contracts, 

125 



and fail to gain contracts when their hands warrant 
higher bids. 

Honor points must never be allowed anything like 
the consideration due them at Bridge. 

Details : 



The idea is to bid on the call best supported by the 
joint hands. If no very appreciable choice exists be- 
tween two calls, it is proper to consider which best fits 
the score. It is absurd to consider the score when one 
call is decidedly the best for a hand. 

The danger score at Auction lies at a point on the rub- 
ber game where three tricks on the call opponents bid 
will carry them out. With reasonable opposition they 
cannot well make over three tricks, even with the de- 
clarer's advantage of playing two hands. 

Intermediate scores have some value. A winning 
declaration which does not go game has, however, 
little to its credit beyond the fact that it has not al- 
lowed the other side to score, and sometimes two suc- 
cessive small scores for the same side win a game. 
It is always better to win a safe contract, even on 
spades at love, than to allow your opponents to do so; 
but it is unjustifiable to run any slight risk for the sake 
of a small score when opponents are bidding on a call 
which cannot possibly go game. 

At a score when either can go game, a strong trump 
call is preferable to a strong one without trumps, but 
a dubious no trump is better than a risky one at trumps, 
because your partner's hand is more apt to be useful 
at no trumps than on one special suit. 

126 



Occasionally a hand is unbeatable at either of two 
alternative makes. I recently held the following hand, 
and selected hearts in preference to no trumps: 

Hearts Clubs Diamonds Spades 

A-K-Q-J-ic^9-8-5-3 A A K-Q 

Either call was unbeatable, but the heart call as- 
sured a higher total score on account of 5 honors in 
one hand. 

"Hazards" (honors, chicane, little slam, and slam) 
have smaller influence over the score at Auction than 
they had at Bridge. In Auction you cannot often af- 
ford to consider the relative values of honors in choos- 
ing between two possible bids, unless both can go game, 
or unless neither can possibly go game. No honor 
value from cards held on one call can fully compensate 
you for a failure to win the game on another call. At 
a love score 4 by cards at royals or hearts, thus winning 
the game and simple honors, is better than winning 2 
by cards at no tnmips with 100 honor score for 4 aces 
in one hand. If two calls are capable of going game, 
select the one offering the greatest total score, unless 
at an added risk. 

The honor values complicate score-keeping, which 
should be made as simple as possible, both to insure 
accuracy and because the score-keeper's task is a 
thankless one. There appears to be no good reason 
why a player should be rewarded for his luck in having 
honors dealt to him. His reward should come through 
his knowledge of bidding and his skill in making his 
cards win tricks. 

In the earlier days of Whist honors had a value in 
127 



game points. As the game developed honor scoring 
was eHminated. At Bridge the honor values were 
restored to compensate a player who declared in a way 
unsuited to the joint hands of himself and partner. 
The declaration could not be changed, although a heavy 
loss might occur. 

At Auction a bid can be changed if it does not suit 
the bidder's partner. No player outside of the dealer 
is forced to bid, while the dealer is Hable only for a 
limited loss if he bids i -Spade on a weak hand. Ac- 
cordingly, no compensative honor value is required by 
any one in event of a loss. 

A player holding 4 aces at no trumps is able to win 
4 tricks with them. That is enough. It is absurd also 
to hand him 100 honor points because he is dealt 4 aces. 

A hand worth at the outside a bid of 2-Royals 
should not be bid up to 4-Royals merely because it 
contains five honors which are worth 90 points. It is 
unfair to a player who has a hand worth a bid of 
4-Hearts to be outbid by another hand merely on its 
honor value. If the bidder of 4-Royals loses 100 for 
2 tricks down, and wins 90 for 5 honors, it is an en- 
couragement to overbidding. 

In reality, nothing is more uninteresting than a game 
where set-backs are common. It is especially so if 
the overbidder is only slightly penalized. 

Wherever the system has been tried of omitting 
honor scores for cards dealt a player, the removal of 
temptation to overbid because of honor values has im- 
proved the game, while the score has been simplified. 
It is to be hoped that the laws in the near future will 
remedy their one apparent defect. 



LEAD TO PARTNER'S STRENGTH 

Chief Essentials: 

Your partner shows strength if he bids anything 
higher than i-Spade, or if he doubles. 

The proper opening leads for cases where partner 
fails to disclose strength will be found under "Trump 
Leads" and "No Trump Leads." 

When your partner has given an informatory bid, 
you can ordinarily expect three tricks from his hand 
if you are the declarer. With an adverse trump 
declaration it is safer to count his hand as probably 
worth only two tricks. On adverse no trump calls 
you can count your partner's hand at full value if you 
hold assistance in his suit. On either 'trump or no- 
trump declaration you should ordinarily open your 
partner's suit. 

Lead your highest card of your partner's suit to 
him at no trumps, unless you have shown strength in 
his suit by raising his bid, and even then unless you 
hold four or more of his suit. In the latter case, open 
his suit as described under "No Trump Leads," in 
order best to show him what you hold. With 4 or 
more cards of a suit it is Hkely that you really have its 

129 



greatest strength, in addition to which it is desirable 
to have part of its strength preserved on declarer's 
left, to enable your partner to lead through the de- 
clarer's hand up to your strength. 

At trumps it is useless to show your length of suit, 
so your opening lead, regardless of suit length, should 
be the highest card of your partner's suit. 

The objects of leading your highest card at no trumps 
are to clear your partner's suit before he loses his re- 
entry, to try to catch high adverse cards, and to dis- 
close to your partner where the outstanding high cards 
of his suit lie. 

A most excellent reason for not leading the suit upon 
which your partner has bid should be had. Many 
games are lost by attempts to be smart and pull off a 
coup in another suit. 

If you hold both ace and king of another suit, you 
should lead the king before opening your partner's 
suit; then keep back the ace and open his suit. The 
king lead shows him you hold the ace so he can put 
you in later. This play holds good whether he has 
bid or shown strength by doubling. 

If you have a set-up suit, or re-entry and a suit 
which can be set-up with a single lead (Hke A-Q-J-io- 
X or K-Q-J-io-X or K-Q-J-X-X-X) , it is better to 
open it than your partner's suit at no trumps. It is 
most unlikely that the declarer would risk two such 
adverse suits, and consequently your suit is undoubt- 
edly better to open than your partner's. 

If your partner has both bid and doubled, nothing 
but the possession of a set-up suit or the lack of one 
of your partner's suit can justify your first leading 

130 



your own suit, with the exception of a single preliminary 
lead of the king, to show him you have an ace to which 
he can lead. 

If your partner doubles a trump call without first 
showing his own suit, do not lead trumps. If you have 
bid on a suit, start leading it. If you have not bid on 
a suit, open w4th the king from ace and king, if you 
have them, to view dimimy to try and discover what 
is wanted led. If you lack such a suit, open the best 
one you have. If you have no choice between your 
suits, lead a low suit in preference to a higher one — 
that is, clubs in preference to hearts, for example. 

Open a strengthless suit with its top card to show 
your partner the highest card you hold in the suit. 
" Strengthening leads," or " supporting cards," as they 
are sometimes called, are unlikely to win tricks if held 
back, but sometimes they force high cards from op- 
ponents, or save your partner from playing a high card 
which may later win a trick. J, lo, 9, and incomplete- 
ly guarded queen are strengthening cards. Your 
partner, after seeing you lead a jack or 10 from the 
top of a suit, can usually place enough other higher 
cards to see that you have given him a " top-of -nothing 
lead." 

A "yarborough" (or "bust") is an original hand con- 
taining nothing higher than the 9, and no suit of over 
five cards. The opening lead of the 9 or 8 from such 
a worthless hand is one way of warning him not to 
depend at all upon you. Throwing away all your cards 
of his suit at no trumps (provided they are worthless) 
means, "Partner, I have no possible re-entry in my 
hand, and cannot win a single trick." A hand has to 
10 131 



be extremely bad, however, to be certain that it can- 
not win a trick. 

If your partner doubles no trumps without pre- 
viously having bid, lead him your highest club, unless 
he has previously notified you that on a third-hand 
double he desires some other course pursued. This is 
known as the *'club convention." 

Details : 



At Auction the opening lead can never be made 
through the declarer's strength, as it can on a passed 
make at Bridge; but if dummy has bid on a side suit 
a lead can be made through his strength, if nothing 
better can be done. The leader also frequently knows 
what his partner wants led. 

Partner's i-Spade bid merely shows lack of a suit 
surely stopped and three general tricks in hand. He 
may have a suit surely stopped, or three general tricks, 
or a long and low suit suitable for a second-round bid. 
One-Spade bids do not necessarily show utter weak- 
ness, but warn you to depend almost entirely upon 
your own strength for the success of your plans. 

Partner may have great strength in a suit which he 
cannot disclose if a previous high bid is made. A 2- 
Club bid would prevent his showing a 3-Spade hand, 
or a suit worth a single bid in red. Any business bid 
cuts off all informatory bids, also lower business bids. 
At Bridge you sought partner's strength mainly in 
higher suits than the trump suit. In Auction you 
reverse the process by looking for partner's strength 
to lie chiefly in suits cut off from bidding. 

132 



One reason for ordinarily preferring to open your 
partner's suit in preference to your own is that it is 
easier to establish a suit by leading up to it than by 
leading away from it. This is especially true when it 
happens that dummy has doubled or has gone over 
your partner's bid. 

It is true that even at trumps it would sometimes 
be better to open low, when you hold several of your 
partner's suit, than to lead the highest card of his suit. 
The gains and losses from such procedure are, however, 
about equal to those from always leading the highest 
card of his suit. Unless you always lead your highest 
card at tnmips, and at no trumps, when you have not 
raised his bid because you hold over three of his suit, 
he cannot always be certain what your lead means. 
If you lead the 6 from K-9-8-6 he will often mistake 
it for the top card you hold. If he wins the first trick 
with the ace from A-J-io-7-5, when dummy shows 
only 4-2, your partner is apt to place both king and 
queen with the declarer and abandon the suit instead 
of allowing your king to win the next trick. 

In some circles it is customary always to open the 
suit upon which you have bid if your partner has re- 
mained silent. Such an arbitrary rule is not wise to 
follow, as the declarer has probably looked out for 
means of stopping your declared strength, while he may 
be unprepared to stop another equally strong suit. 
The unexpected lead is most apt to catch him napping. 
The strength must, of course, lie in your own hand. 
It is not safe to lead a weak suit merely on the chance 
that your partner can carry it on, especially if he has 
bid I -Spade or has passed. 

133 



Hearts 


Clubs 


Diamonds 


Spades 


A-4-3 


9-6-5-3 


8 


K-J-9-7-4 


K-Q-5-2 


J-7-4 


J- 10-6-3-2 


4 



The "club convention" is now quite generally under- 
stood. Its full details will be found under ''Con- 
ventional Plays." 

A rather unique situation sometimes presents itself 
where a singleton lead can be very advantageously 
made before you open your partner's suit. Say part- 
ner's 2-Club bid has been overcalled with 2-Hearts 
at a time when your hand is like this: 



or 



In the first case lead your singleton diamond, and in 
the second case lead your only spade. The supporting 
8 may be judged to be from the top of a suit because 
you have no club to lead. The low spade will surely 
give the thing away if the declarer has the high spades, 
or if they appear in the exposed hand of dummy. If 
your partner happens to have the ace and wins the 
first trick, you have done no harm, and unless his club 
suit is set up he will doubtless return your lead. Prob- 
ably the declarer will win the first trick and start 
leading trumps. In the first hand you will immediate- 
ly stop him with the ace. In the second case you will 
win either his first or second lead with the queen. As 
soon as you have won, you will open your partner's 
club suit, which he is almost sure to win with the ace. 
Then he will return your short suit and let you ruff. 
You again lead clubs, and he again lets you ruff. In 
this way you can utilize one or two small trumps which 
otherwise would never win a trick. If your partner's 
clubs are not fully set up, the scheme may fail, but it 

134 



is well worth a try. Ordinarily, singletons should not 
be led on your partner's double, or if he has shown 
strength by bidding, unless they are aces. This par- 
ticular card distribution makes it the best possible lead 
at trumps, provided your partner has a solid suit, or 
sits over dummy's honors in that smt. 

As a rule, it is best not to open your own strong suit, 
if it has been bid by an opponent before you had the 
chance to do so yourself, or if your bid has been doubled, 
unless your partner has not disclosed his suit. 

If a bid sufficiently high to win is made before your 
partner has had a chance to show his suit, a situation 
arises which is precisely similar to ordinary Bridge, 
and the game must be played in exactly the same way 
in most respects. You know merely that your partner 
cannot, or deems it most profitable not to either raise 
the bid or to double. 



TRUMP LEADS 

Chief Essentials: 

At trumps your best course as side player ordinarily 
is to win tricks with your strong cards of plain suits 
before the declarer can make discards and ruff. Also 
to utilize a weak trump suit in ruffs before trumps are 
led. 

A marked difference in the "blind" (or opening) 
lead exists between trumps and no trumps. At trumps 
the proper lead varies from the normal if your partner 
doubles or if he has bid. 

There are six general varieties of openings at trumps : 

1. Leading from a sequence of high cards, or from 3 honors, 
as king from A-K and K-Q, or 10 from K-J-io. 

2. A strengthening lead, queen, jack, 10, or 9, as the top 
of a suit. 

3. Leading a singleton, except the king. This latter card 
is never led unless accompanied by ace or queen. 

4. I^ong-suit openings. 

5. Low-card leads from short suits. 

6. Trump attack. 

Honor leads, either from long or short suits, are 
generally the most efficacious. The lead of a winning 

136 



honor other than the ace can rarely be criticized. An 
opening lead of the king from A-K, especially if the 
suit is short, is always good, as it enables you to view 
dummy's hand before deciding what to do next, with- 
out losing control of your opening suit. 

A strengthening card lead serves a double purpose: 
it may draw a winning card from dummy or save pone 
from playing a valuable high card. It also shows your 
partner that you have no higher card in the suit to 
which he can lead. It rarely does harm, and may 
greatly assist your partner. A strengthening card is 
probably useless for you to hold, and forms an impor- 
tant feature of the defensive tactics required by a weak 
hand, or by one holding tenaces up to which leads are 
desired. 

A singleton ace is always a fine opening if you wish 
to ruff that suit. Singleton queen, jack, lo, or 9 is 
apt to prove a disappointing lead, as it will probably 
be mistaken for a strengthening card, and your partner 
will not return the suit for you to niff . The lower the 
singleton the more apt you will be to secure the desired 
ruff. Opportunities to trump should not be sought if 
you hold the "blank " ace of trumps, two trumps headed 
by king, three to the queen, four to the jack, four like 
10-9-8-7,, or five of any denomination. The one ex- 
ception to the rule not to ruff when holding a guarded 
trump honor is when dvimmy is over all your trumps, 
so that they are worthless except for rufHng. With 
six trumps or over you can seek a ruff. 

Long-suit openings, to be effective beyond short- 
suit openings, with equal top cards in both cases, must 
be when your hand is suitable for offensive tactics, 

137 



having strong trump support, or else abundant re- 
entry in the other two plain suits. In either of these 
cases the long suit can be established, and used to 
force the declarer to ruff until his hand is exhausted. 

The lead of a card lower than the 8 ordinarily re- 
quests a return of the suit, if your partner has not bid 
on it. If you do not want it returned, refrain from low- 
card leads if you have another suitable lead of an honor, 
a strengthening card, or, in some cases, a trump. 

Trump attack can be advantageously made only 
under certain conditions. It is proper with a doubling 
hand, one strong in trumps, with either a powerful 
side suit or with scattered high cards of plain suits. 
Do not lead your partner a trump if he has doubled, 
unless your hand is strong in trumps, or unless it has 
some trump strength and can also render outside help. 

Holding nothing in plain suits, you can commence 
a trump attack from a sequence of high trumps, as 
A-K, K-Q-J, K-Q, or Q-J-io. This will pull trumps 
out of your weak opponent, and prevent his ruffing. 
It may so reduce the declarer's hand as to enable your 
partner to get in a long plain suit without being ruffed. 

When a declaration is undoubled, and your partner 
has shown no suit, if you have to make the opening 
lead from a hand not warranting trump attack, the 
following table shows, arranged in order of their aver- 
age desirabiHty, the plain suits from which leads 
should be made. 

In the table "X" signifies any card of a lower de- 
nomination than that specifically called for by the 
preceding letter. Thus A-K-Q-X means: ace, king, 
queen, and any fourth card from jack down to deuce. 

138 



OPENING LEADS AT TRUMPS 



Class I 


r A-K ] 

A-K-Q 

A-K-X [ 

A-K-Q-X 
, A-K-X-X , 1 


Class 2 


f A-K-Q-X-X 
A-K-X-X-X 
A-K-Q-X-X-X 

_ A-K-X-X-X-X 


Class 3 


A only 


Class 4 


f K-Q 
K-Q-J 
K-Q-X 
K-Q-J-io 
K-Q-J-X 
K-Q-X-X 
K-Q-J-X-X 
K-Q-X-X-X 



More than 3 out of 4 times these suits will win 
the first two tricks, because neither opponent 
can ruff. They give even chances to win the 
third trick; with the queen, if dummy has just 
three of the suit; otherwise by opening a new 
suit of which dummy lacks the ace. 

) These suits are more apt to be ruffed on 

! first or second rounds, but give even chances 

I of winning three straight tricks by opening 

J a new suit on the third lead. 

y Gives practically a certain trick with an 

! opportunity to discover from dummy's 

I hand what partner probably most de- 

I sires led. 



Such suits offer i in 3 chances of finding 
the ace with pone. In any event, the 
command of the suit is retained, even if 
the first trick is lost. 



I Singletons lower than king 
Sequences to Q, J, 10 or 9 
Doubletons to Q, J, 10 or 9 
Long low suits 
[ Short low suits 



Offer I in 3 chances that pone 
can win the first trick, but do 
not retain the suit command. 



A-Q-io, A- J- 10, and K-J-io, with or without 
smaller cards, are powerful when led up to, but are bad 
to open on the blind lead. If the missing honors lie 
with dummy they can be opened later, since he can 
evade your strength, regardless of how the lead comes. 
If the missing honors lie with declarer a gain comes 
through some one else opening the suit. 

For similar reasons all tenaces and combinations of 
two honors not in sequence are bad to open blindly; 
as: A-Q, A-J, K-J, K-io, Q-io. So also are suits 
of low cards headed by a single honor. If the ace 
is led from a low suit you catch only the lowest 
card each player has, but when some one else opens 
the suit a high honor is apt to be killed, possibly 

139 



greatly to your partner's benefit. Three-card suits, 
unless containing a high sequence, also 2 -card suits, 
without a high top card, are useless to open on your 
own account, and may cause your partner to lose a 
high honor, perhaps the king, which otherwise would 
have won a trick. 

The proper card to play from a given combination 
not only must be the one giving the best chances to 
win the maximum, but also it must be selected with 
reference to giving all possible information to you 
partner. If you hold both ace and king, it is evident 
that you will as surely win the first trick whether the 
ace or the king is led, but if you play them in ascend- 
ing order (king, ace) it means you have at least one 
more card; while playing them in reverse order (ace, 
king) means that your suit holds only the doubleton. 
Similar differences in the play of other combinations 
will convey wholly different meanings to a skilled 
player. 

As a suit averages only two rounds before some one 
can ruff, it is useless to vary your leads at trumps to 
show 4 cards of a suit; but use the "third-round call" 
whenever possible, as explained later on. 

The ace lead shows either a suit composed only of 
itself and the king or else a suit of any length which 
lacks the king. It denies holding the king with any 
other card. 

The king lead always means that the ace or the 
queen, or both, are also held. It denies holding the 
doubleton ace. A singleton king is never led, as it 
stands better chances of winning if some one else leads. 

The queen opening denies having either the ace or the 
140 



king. It is led from a suit of any length containing the 
jack. It is also led from a doubleton, regardless of 
what the second card may be, also when singleton. 

Jack leads deny holding a higher card of the suit. 
It is led from J-10-9, regardless of suit length, from 
J-io with one or two others, also as the top of any 
doubleton, and as a singleton. 

The 10 is led from K-J-io combinations, but other- 
wise denies the possession of ace, king, queen, or jack. 
It is led as the top of a sequence of any length, as a 
doubleton with any lower card, also as a singleton. 

The 9 is led only as the top of a sequence of any 
length, as a doubleton with any lower card, and as a 
singleton. 

Any card lower than the 9 should indicate a hope ulti- 
mately to win something in the suit led, although the 
8 is a dubious card, possibly top of a very low sequence. 
Never unnecessarily lead a very low card from a suit 
unless you can ruff the second round or hold possible 
tricks in high cards. 

Reserve very low card leads for '* come-on," and try 
to help your partner with a strengthening lead if all 
else fails. Ability to read a partner's cards is worth 
more tricks than will be lost through making your leads 
intelligible. 



Details : 

If you open with a winning card so that you view 
dummy's hand seeking a favorable suit to open, re- 
member that it is folly to lead through too great 

141 



strength (like ace-king), but proper to lead through 
any suit having a high missing card or two (like ace- 
queen, or king-jack). In the latter case your partner 
may win two tricks with the ace-queen if you lead 
through dummy; but your partner can win only a 
single trick with the same cards if he is obliged to lead 
up to dummy's strength. Any tenace, or fourchette, 
shown by dummy (unless you hold the missing inter- 
mediate card) offers a good suit through which to lead. 

King and low cards in dummy offers another good 
suit to open. If your partner holds the ace and queen 
of the suit, he can win with both of them, whereas he 
could not do so if he were forced to open it. A suit in 
dummy's hand suitable for opening on the blind lead 
is useless to lead through. Thus K-Q-J-X is not good 
to lead through, as it is a good opening suit; but 
A-X-X-X is not bad to lead through. The ace is 
bound to win sooner or later. By letting it win at 
once you are perhaps clearing the way for your partner 
to win the next trick or two with the king and queen. 

Some players having a singleton and also an ace 
(or an ace and king) always lead the winning card first, 
to be certain that dummy does not hold the ace of 
their singleton suit. Other players maintain that a 
singleton should always be used as an opening lead, 
because it cannot be recognized that a ruff is sought 
unless the singleton opens the hand. The other side 
of the question is that your partner has only one 
chance in three of holding the ace of your singleton 
suit. If you wait until you see that dummy does not 
hold the dreaded ace, you know that even chances 
exist, whether it is held by pone or declarer. 

142 



The lead of an ace, followed by a change of suit, may 
mean: 

1. That the king is still held singly to afford the pone a 
safe return lead in case he desires another lead through 
dummy. 

2. That the king is still held, and, since neither the queen 
nor the jack appear in dummy's three cards, that a return lead 
through the declarer may result in the capture of the queen, 
leaving the control of the suit to pone's jack. 

3. That the ace came from a long suit which lacked the king, 
and because a ruff is feared, or because dummy has the king, 
a change of suit is thought desirable. 

4. That the king is held, and a singleton lead is now being 
made because dummy does not hold the ace over the singleton. 

5. That the ace was a singleton, and that the ruff is desired 
in its suit. 

Since the pone is left to pick the correct reason out 
of five possibilities, your chance that the second card 
led will be recognized as a singleton, if the ace of another 
suit precedes it, is small indeed. 

The lead of king, from ace, king, and others, fol- 
lowed by a singleton, is equally confusing. Many 
players would judge that it meant eldest hand held 
ace and jack (imless the queen showed in dummy) 
and desired a lead from pone to enable both honors to 
win tricks. 

Some players are quick to detect singleton leads; 
others never suspect them. On that account singleton 
leads take third rank in the desirable list, instead of first. 
If the singleton is a low card, it ordinarily clearly shows 
that a return lead is desirable. If it is a strengthening 
card its meaning cannot be surely read in most cases. 
If its meaning is clear, and the declarer has the ace, 

143 



trump« will almost certainly be led to stop the possibil- 
ity of ruffs. 

Notwithstanding its drawbacks, the hope of a ruff 
is often all that weakness has, and should be sought in 
such cases by an opening lead of a singleton, regardless 
of its denomination. A doublet on headed by a 
strengthening card is all right to open from weakness, 
as a forlorn hope that the third round may come before 
trumps are led, but only lead from a low doublet on as 
a last resort. The mischief you may cause by fooling 
your partner will average to outweigh your rare gains. 

Strengthening leads from sequences like Q-J-io 
or J-10-9 are not only apt to be useful to partner, 
but often result in winning later tricks with your own 
cards. It often happens that two higher cards, and 
occasionally three higher honors, fall on your lead of 
a low honor. 

An established long suit cannot be run out until the 
declarer's trumps have been exhausted. An attempt 
to do so usually results in the declarer ruffing from one 
hand and discarding from the other, consequently a 
second suit soon falls short, and is ruffed when your 
side attempts to lead it. Ruffing from the weak hand 
and discarding from the strong hand ruins plain suits 
in which tricks could otherwise be won. 

Since a yarborough (a hand holding no card higher 
than the 9) averages to come to a player only once in 
1,828 deals, it is indeed rare to be found with no 
strengthening card to lead, in case you cannot open a 
suit which you desire led back to you. Sticking to the 
rule that a low card generally desires an immediate 
return of a suit greatly increases your chances of a ruff 

144 



with a low singleton lead, without detracting from your 
chances if the singleton happens to be a card not 
recognizable. 

If your partner has doubled, it is probable that the 
least desired opening lead is a trump. Because he has 
doubled you must subordinate your hand to his and 
must play his game. If he has not bid when you hold 
a long suit headed by an ace, the wisest thing to do 
is to view dummy, in order to see what your partner de- 
sires led. His trump strength may be very great either 
in high cards or in length of suit. He may have un- 
usual side strength, perhaps a short established suit 
with which he trusts to force the declarer. He may 
reckon upon using numerous small trumps to ruff side 
suits. Lacking a winning card, lead from the suit you 
have bid, or if you have not bid lead your strongest 
suit to show him where you can help. If you cannot 
help, open with a strengthening lead to show that you 
are powerless. It will often be better to lead a trump 
than to fool your partner with a low lead from a 
strengthless suit. It is a good idea to lead the king 
from ace-king before you lead your highest card of 
your protected suit, to show how a safe lead can be 
returned to you. Do not lead an ace from a short suit 
if the king is lacking. The ace is too valuable to be 
risked on an opening, when it may be needed to kill 
a high card lying with the declarer. Reserve the ace 
and open with your next best suit. 

When dtimmy has a few small trumps and a short 
suit, with another long one, a cross ruff may be estab- 
Ushed. Cut this off by leading trumps. Cut off even his 
chance to ruff, whether or not the "see-saw" threatens. 

145 



Lacking any other possible trick, the ace of a long 
suit can be led to prevent a slam. If the suit is short 
the danger of a slam does not justify such a lead. 

After dummy's cards are boarded it is useless to 
treasiire a tenace of which the intermediate card lies 
in dummy. If you have ace-queen and dummy 
shows the guarded king, you can lead the ace when 
convenient. The declarer will hardly be kind enough 
to lead the king up to your tenace. 

If you hold three to the king and dummy fails to 
show the ace, you can lead a small card away from 
the king if you find that the declarer does not open the 
suit. It is probable that your partner has the ace, 
quite likely both ace and queen, so that he cannot open 
the suit. It is unlikely that the declarer holds both 
ace and queen, or he would have tried to lead up to 
them from dummy. In any event, your king cannot 
be harmed by your lead, and great good may follow. 
If the ace shows in dummy, or if your king is singly 
guarded, you should not open that suit. 

It may seem that a full disclosure of your hand will 
be as useful to the declarer as to your partner. This is 
a mistake, however. The declarer knows precisely 
what cards are against him. It is less important to 
know in which hand each hostile card lies. The side 
players are in ignorance as to whether a hidden card 
is for or against them. 

In disclosing to your partner that you hold a card 
you merely tell the declarer in which of two opposing 
hands it lies; but you inform your partner that it is 
friendly, and is in your hand. This puts him on more 
even terms with the declarer than he was before. 



NO-TRUMP LEADS 

Chief Essentials: 

As side player at no trumps usually your only 
chance to win is to establish a long suit. The de- 
clarer's discards must then curtail his long suit or 
weaken his remaining suits. The side first able to 
set up its long suit possesses the most powerfiil weapon 
to be found at no tnmips. 

The best suit to open is one headed by ace, king, 
and queen, either with or without others of that suit. 
They allow a safe look at dummy, with two certain 
tricks left in the suit. 

There are eight general varieties of openings at no 
trumps : 



No. I Solid Suits. 



A-K-Q-J- 
A-K-Q-J 
A-K-Q 



Each card is a sure trick. 
The view of dummy and 
the fall of the cards guide 
you to a second opening. 



No. 2 Probably estab- 
lished suits. 



A-K-X-X-X-X-X 

A-K-Q-X-X-X 

A-K-Q-J-X 



Each card is a probable 
winner and an opportu- 
nity is afforded to study 
for a second opening. 



No. 3 Suits probably 
establish able 
without pone's 
assistance. 



A-X-X-X-X-X-X 

K-Q-J-X-X-X 

A-K-X-X-X-X 



If holding in addition a 
card of re-entry. 



11 



147 



No. 4 



Suits with 3 
honors; long 
suits with 2 
honors in se- 
quence. 



A-J-io-X-X 

A-K-J-X 

A-K-X-X-X-X 



A-Q-X-X-X-X without re-entry 
No. 5 •! K-Q-J-X without re entry 
Q-X-X-X-X-X-X with an 



No. 6 Suits having 
no re-entry. 



No. 7 Long suits. 



No. 8 Short support- 
ing suits. 



another ace 

A-io-X-X-X 

K-X-X-X-X-X 

Q-J-X-X-X-X 



9-X-X-X-X 
lo-X-X-X 



f 10-9-8 
\ J-io 
^ 9-X-X 



1 With or without re-entry 
several tricks may be 
won either through part- 

■ ner's ability to help or 
because the declarer is 
long in the suit and 
must finally lead it. 

Needing partner to win 
one trick and lead back 
the suit. 

Requiring active co-op- 
eration of partner to es- 
tablish. 

Incapable of winning a 
trick except through be- 
ing partner's long suit. 
Unlikely to be any one's 
long suit. 



Of possible assistance to 
partner. 



Q-X or J-X-X might win on a finesse ; consequently, 
they are bad to open. 

Never open a short suit containing your re-entry 
cards; as, A-X, K-Q-X, K-J-io. 

Never open a short suit lacking supporting cards; 
as, 8-X, 7-X-X, unless it is in clubs, under the club con- 
vention on the pone's double. 

In general, open your longest and strongest suit 
when your partner has neither bid nor doubled. 

A suit shorter than four cards can legitimately be 
opened in few instances — viz.: 



1. If it consists of A-K-Q, as already explained. 

2. If pone doubles, as explained under "Conventional 
Plays." 

3. In a hand devoid of possible re-entry, with the longest 
suit headed by a low card, a short supporting suit can be 
opened with its top card. 

148 



Suits like A-X-X-X, K-X-X-X-X, moderately 
long and having a top honor, are more useful to hold 
for re-entry than to open. Your partner may re- 
quire re-entry to establish a long suit even if you do 
not. In the absence of other possibilities you may, 
of course, be forced to open such a suit. 

Having two honor suits of equal length, open the 
weaker one first, and use the higher cards of the other 
for re-entry. Open a suit like Q-J-X-X, and use an 
A-K-X-X suit for its re-entry cards. 

In selecting the proper card to lead from a given suit 
several items must be considered: 

1. Catching opponents' unguarded high cards. 

2. Retaining control of the suit. 

3. Making the necessary loss of a trick as expensive as pos- 
sible for the declarer. 

4. Affording partner a chance to utilize any strength he 
may possess in the suit, and to lead it back while he still has 
cards in it. 

5. Disclosing to partner what you hold in your suit to 
enable him to judge whether your suit or his own will best 
pay to play. 

The length of your suit and whether you have or 
have not re-entry often influence the selection of the 
opening card. 

Some of the leads in common use unnecessarily fail 
to meet some of these requisites without compensating 
gain in other ways. 

The following table shows the card most nearly 
meeting the requirements in a majority of hands. 
These 19 regular leads and the irregular leads from 
short supporting suits are the most important features 

149 



of the defense against a no trumper undoubled by pone. 
The lead when partner doubles is explained elsewhere. 

OPENING LEADS AT NO TRUMP 



Lead 
Ace 


I 


Holding 
Ace and any other honor with 7 or more in the suit and re- 
entry. Otherwise lead as given below. 


King 


2 
3 

4 
5 
6 
7 
8 


A-K-Q or more with or without re-entry. 

A-K-J, 4 or more in suit with re-entry or 7 without. 

A-K-io, 4 or more in suit with re-entry or 7 without. 

A-K, 7 or more with or without re-entry. 

K-Q-J, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 

K-Q-io, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 

K-Q, 7 or more with or without re-entry. 


Queen 


9 
10 

II 


A-Q-J, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 
Q-J-io, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 
Q-J-9, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 


Jack 


12 
13 
14 


A-K-J, less than 7 in suit without re-entry. 
A-J-io, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 
J-10-9, 4 or more with or without re-entry. 


10 


IS 
i6 
17 
i8 


A-K-io, less than 7 in suit without re-entry. 
A-Q-io, 7 or more in suit without re-entry. 
K-J-io, 4 or more in suit with or without re-entry. 
10-9-8, 4 or more in suit with or without re-entry. 


4th 

best 

card 

of suit 


19 


Any other combination such as: 

Single honors any number in suit with or without re-entry. 

A-K, less than 7 in suit with or without re-entry. 

A-Q, A-J, A-io, less than 7 with or any number without 

re-entry. 
K-Q, less than 7 in suit with or without re-entry. 
K-J, K-io, Q-io, any number with or without re-entry. 
A-Q-io, less than 7 in suit with or without re-entry. 
Long suits without an honor with or without re-entry. 



The opening lead of an honor at no trumps usually 
shows that the suit holds 3 honors or 7 cards. In ex- 
ceptional cases, however, the jack or 10 may come from 
a short supporting suit in a valueless hand. 

An ace opening shows 7 cards in the suit with another 
honor and re-entry. 

A king lead shows the presence of the ace or queen, 
150 



or both. With both ace and queen the suit may be of 
any length either with or without re-entry. If either 
ace or queen is lacking the minimum length is 7 cards 
with or without re-entry, imless jack or 10 is held. 

A queen lead shows absence of the king, but presence 
of two other honors (or the 9). The suit may be of 
any length over 3 cards regardless of whether re-entry 
is or is not held. 

A jack lead denotes absence of the queen, but 
usually the presence of two other honors (or the 9), 
and a suit of more than 3 cards regardless of re-entry. 

A 10 lead denies holding the jack, except in the 
combination K-J-io. It usually shows the presence 
of two other honors, or else that it comes from the top 
of a sequence and a suit of over 3 cards regardless of 
re-entry. 

Details : 

Just as the lead of a low card at trumps should be 
reserved for cases where your opening suit contains 
some strength, so at no trumps the lead of a fourth 
best should be made, if possible, from a suit having good 
possibilities of winning something. Long siiits of low 
cards are sometimes held like these: 10-9-X-X-X, or 
8-7-X-X, or perhaps 1 0-8-X-X, or 9-7-X-X-X. Such 
suits offer such small hope of winning a trick that it 
is unwise to risk fooling some partners. With their 
top cards in sequence it is better to lead the highest 
one. When no top sequence is held you can lead the 
second-best card, provided your partner will imder- 

151 



stand such a lead. This false carding will usually 
be apparent and show your partner the true condition. 

Do not expect a partner to follow suit twice to win- 
ning cards of your long suit (or to follow once and win 
the second trick), and still be able to lead you back a 
third round. It can be done 63 times in 100 if you 
only hold 4, 54 times if you hold 5 ; but only 42 times 
when holding 6, and 32 times in 100 if you hold 7 of 
the suit. Where high cards are probably insufficient 
to clear a suit this probable inability of your partner 
to lead a third round necessitates in many cases a 
low opening lead when you hold no re-entry. Such 
procedure loses the first trick two-thirds of the time, 
but it gives the pone enough better chances to lead a 
second round (if he holds re-entry) to more than com- 
pensate for the times you might be fortunate enough 
to clear the. suit, had you made high leads at first, in 
order to catch opponents' unguarded honors. 

Out of your 138,428,433 chances to hold A-K-J- 
X-X-X of a given suit there are 92,285,622 chances 
that the queen lies adversely to 46,142,811 that the 
pone has it (or 2 to i). 

Any one of four reasonable methods can be employed 
to open this suit: 

I. The king and ace can be led to catch the queen. If the 
queen falls or lies with pone, the jack can be led to clear the 
suit for the smaller cards. In addition there is the slight 
chance that pone will hold four if an opponent has three to 
the queen. This will enable pone to put you in if he holds 
re-entry. This method offers 48 in 100 chances of finally 
establishing your suit, presuming, of course, that your hand 
lacks re-entry. 

152 



2. The king can be led to view dummy. If the queen is 
caught on the first round, or if the doubly guarded queen 
shows in dummy, the jack must follow; the queen winning 
on the second round enables partner to reopen the suit if he 
holds three cards in it. If the singly guarded queen appears 
in dummy, the ace must be led. Otherwise a new suit must 
be opened, to try to secure a lead through the declarer. This 
method gives only a fraction more than 48 in 100 chances 
finally to establish the suit. It is more complex than No. i, 
and hence is less desirable. 

3. Lead the jack to force out the queen. This method 
results 27 in 100 times in losing a trick by an adverse 
singleton or doubleton queen which Nos. i and 2 would have 
saved. Nevertheless, it results in establishing your suit 17 
more times in 100 than the first two methods could give, and 
ultimately establishes your suit 65 in 100 times. The gain 
is due wholly to pone's added ability to lead back the 
suit after a single round instead of after two or three rounds. 
The net gain in tricks is (3 X 17) — 27 = 24 in 100 times, or 
an average of one-quarter trick per hand over either of the 
two preceding methods. It is in reality the best method 
of all to pursue. 

4. Lead the fourth-best card. On account of losing to the 
10, 9, or smaller card which could not have won over the jack, 
there is a possibility of the suit being blocked oftener than 
under No. 3. This method gives 63 chances in 100 of finally 
setting up the suit, with a gain of 18 tricks in 100 times over 
Nos. I and 2. It is accordingly less desirable than No. 3. 
With only 5 cards in the suit instead of 6 this method possesses 
a slight advantage over No. 3, but scarcely enough to warrant 
a deviation from the rule to lead one of three honors. With 
but 4 cards in the suit the only disadvantage this lead has 
is its failure to disclose to partner the great strength you 
have, if the fourth-best card happens to be quite low, or if 
it happens to be the 9. Unless you want to vary the lead 
according to what your fourth-best card is, it will be found 
better in the long run uniformly to lead the jack in pref- 
erence to your fourth-best card on 4 or 5 card suits. 

153 



The reason for devoting so much space to this case 
is because it well illustrates a general principle appli- 
cable to suits of 5 or 6 cards, which lack one honor of 
being probably established, with no card of re-entry 
in the other suits. More averages to be gained by 
leading the honor directly below the missing one to 
draw it out than by attempting to catch the missing 
honor by means of higher leads. With proper cards 
of re-entry more gain will accrue from high-card leads. 
You then add your own chances of re-entry to pone's 
small chances of being able to lead your suit. The 
final result is increased economy in tricks of about one- 
quarter trick per hand over No. 3, where no re-entry 
is held. 

Some players fail to consider what is due a partner 
when they lead from the middle of a sequence or bot- 
tom instead of from its top. They argue that if they 
hold A-K-Q-J-X-X-X it does not matter which hon- 
or they lead. It is true that they will win as many 
tricks in this particular case, but the habit is a bad one 
to form. Let us suppose that your partner leads the 
jack instead of the king from K-Q-J-X-X-X, of which 
you hold the ace and another. You may have at that 
time a suit probably requiring the loss of a single trick 
to establish. You see that the jack cannot come from 
A-K-J or A-J-io, because you hold the ace. It 
appears to be from J- 10-9 and others, or possibly a 
strengthening lead from J- 10 only, provided the 10 is 
concealed in the declarer's hand. If your partner is 
known to lead the 10, and not the jack, from K-J-io, 
you cannot very well read it as anything else. If the 
10 appears in dummy's or your own hand, it is evident 

154 



that eldest hand has false-carded; but what he really 
has is a mystery. 

If you let the trick go by to learn what the false 
carding means, you block the suit. To play the ace 
and lead back your other card instead of leading out 
your own strong suit seems foolish. If the declarer 
has the lo, so that false carding is not detected, it 
seems doubly foolish. If an attempt to set up your 
suit instead of leading back his suit results in 
disaster, your partner cannot blame anything ex- 
cept his own folly in departing from conventional 
leads. 

The rule to lead one of three honors is only absolute 
where two of them are in sequence, and the suit hold- 
ing over 3 cards, A-Q-io, are the only three honors 
where two are not in sequence. It is a wretched suit 
to open because of its double tenace, and is never 
opened with an honor with less than seven in its suit. 
If re-entry is held, the ace is led from seven (just as 
if it were ace-queen or ace-io). Without re-entry the 
lo is led to permit partner to return the suit, as he 
probably holds only two. Pone has 5 in 9 chances to 
hold either king or jack, or both. One of two honors 
not in sequence is led only from ace and another honor 
with seven in the suit and re-entry. Leads from two 
honors in sequence without a third are made only 
when one of them is the king (see leads Nos. 5 and 8), 
or when the jack is led as the top of a sequence. The 
lead of a single honor only comes with the 10 as top 
of a sequence. These rules are for opening no-trump 
leads when partner has not bid. 

You can remember which honor to lead from three, 
IS5 



when only two of them are in sequence and a trick 
must be lost unless partner has a missing honor, in 
this way: lead the one next below the highest missing 
honor to force that out of the way — thus, king from 
K-Q-io, to force out the ace, or to catch the jack; 
jack from A-K-J, to force out the queen and give 
partner a chance to return the suit. The only ex- 
ception to this simple rule is to lead the lo from 
K-J-io. This is done for convenience. The jack is 
led from two strong combinations, A-K-J and A-J-io. 
The 10 is led from only one other strong combination, 
A-K-io, except the rare lead from seven to A-Q-io, 
if without re - entry. This gives fewer combina- 
tions to read from jack leads if the lo is led from 
K-J-io. 

Many players refuse to open a suit of less than four 
cards at no trtmips. Even where a strengthening lead 
is the only reasonable thing to give they find fault if 
it fails to benefit them when led by a partner from a 
hopelessly weak hand. Fortunately, a choice between 
such a "sporting" lead and opening a four-card suit 
headed by a card smaller than a lo occurs only once 
in a thousand hands. 

In leading from a sequence always lead the top card, 
unless that is the ace ; in this case lead the king. On 
the following round lead the lowest card in your hand 
sure to win a trick. This is to show the length of 
the sequence. From A-K-Q-J-io-8 or K-Q-J-io-8 
lead the king. On the second round lead the lo. 
The third round lead the lowest remaining card of the 
sequence — in this case the jack. At no trumps your 
partner cannot tell whether you hold the ace or whether 

IS6 



the declarer is saving it to win the third round. In 
any event, the sequence is so long that it cannot matter 
to your partner. At trumps it would be evident that 
you held the ace, or the declarer would have won the 
first trick. In case the 9 fell to your king you would 
lead the 8 instead of the 10 for the second round, since 
the 8 will win as surely as the 10 after the 9 has been 
played. It is your partner's business to note the fall 
of the 9 and to interpret correctly your lead of the 8. 
At trumps, unless you open the suit after all trumps 
are exhausted from your partner's hand, the second 
lead of a very low card of a sequence might possibly 
fool him into thinking that you held only the ace, 
king, and the low card, and were offering him a ruff 
to enable you to save the ace for future use. Hence 
the safer way to lead from a long sequence at trimips 
is to go down in regular order, instead of at once show- 
ing the number in sequence. 

The second no-trump lead from a suit like A-Q-J- 
X-X, if the king does not cover your queen lead, will 
be the jack, but the third lead must depend upon cir- 
cumstances. If the king lies well guarded in dummy, 
the declarer may refuse to play it upon the queen 
because he believes that you are leading from the top 
of a sequence Q-J-io and others, and that your partner 
holds the ace. In that case the deception is kept up 
by a second lead of the jack, which will probably be 
passed also. If the king still has a guard and pone 
and declarer have followed both times, the 10 must 
have been drawn, and none of the suit remain except 
those held by yourself and dummy. If you are with- 
out re-entry the ace must be played to save that 

157 



trick and to note from his discard what pone wants 
led. If you have re-entry your three remaining cards 
will win two tricks, and the other must be surrendered 
to dummy. If your re-entry card is perfectly safe, 
and especially if it belongs to dummy's strongest suit, 
your best plan is to lead out your ace, following by a 
smaU one for dummy to win. Your remaining card of 
the suit will then be good. If your partner shows by 
his discard, at the time your ace is led, that he holds 
a suit of real value, it depends upon the certainty of 
your re-entry whether you should next clear your 
suit or whether you should lead the pone's suit at once. 
If you believe that his suit will be worth two tricks 
more on an immediate lead than it will be worth if he 
has to wait, you can abandon your hope of winning 
another trick in your own suit. It is never good 
policy, however, to abandon a sure trick on a mere 
chance of gain. If the declarer's side seems able to 
run out a solid suit before you can hope to re-enter, 
the delay may ruin your partner's hand, but adverse 
suits requiring establishing will give your partner 
plenty of chance for re-entry, and you can clear your 
own suit at once. 

Upon an opening lead of queen from A-Q-J-X-X, 
two out of three times the king will lie with pone or 
declarer. The ace lead is an urgent demand for pone 
to underplay his highest honor, to enable you to see 
what opposes you. The king or queen lead is a some- 
what less imperative demand to do this, while the lead 
of a jack or lo is still less urgent. If pone holds three 
to the king, he may unblock in the regulation style, 
followed in many places by playing his middle card on 

iS8 



your queen and overplaying your jack with his king. 
The simplest and most satisfactory play is, however, 
to overplay your queen with the king, to show where 
it lies, and to lead back his next highest card. It is 
useless to hold up a high card unless it is needed to 
catch something shown by dummy. If the declarer 
holds three or four to the king he will, in all probability, 
let you win the first trick. It is likely that you cannot 
tell until the second round how the cards are distrib- 
uted, and the only thing to do is to lead the jack on 
the second round, regardless of the other cards you 
hold. If the king does not fall on the jack, the ace 
must follow, and next a small card, if you have re- 
entry. If you have no re-entry and dummy's hand 
leads you to believe that your partner may have a 
third card of your suit, you can stop the suit after two 
roimds and try to put your partner in with another 
suit, in order to secure a lead of your own suit through 
the declarer. Without re-entry, and without hope 
that your partner has a third card of your smt, the only 
remaining thing to do is to lead your ace and then 
abandon the suit for one which may help your 
partner. 

Being blocked on the third round of a suit is more 
than twice as serious as being blocked on its second 
round, because your partner's chances to hold three of 
your suit are more than twice as good as his chances 
to hold four. On that account it is better to be blocked 
the first or second round than on the third. The de- 
clarer knows this and acts accordingly. 

Holding A-Q-J, the most common divisions of the 
suit are as follows: 

159 



you have a 
total of 


The others will A 
usually hold 


iter the opening 
they will hold 


4 
5 
6 


4-3-2 
3-3-2 
3-2-2 


3-2-1 
2-2-1 
2-1-1 


7 


3-2-1 


2-1-0 


8 


2-2-1 


i-i-o 



As the missing king can rarely be more than singly 
guarded on the second round, ^he jack lead will usually 
bring it out, but the ace lead on the second round will 
probably cause a loss on the third round, with all that 
it entails. The comparatively few times an ace will 
be lost through such play will be more than made up 
by the number of times your partner can lead you a 
third round, if your original suit holds 4 or 5 cards. 
With a suit of over five cards the chances to hold you 
up until the third round are small. The chances, 
however, that partner can lead a third round if you are 
held up are still smaller. 

The ace-queen-jack combination is no more impor- 
tant than various others. The reason for entering into 
a discussion of several of the many problems which 
may arise from its opening is merely to illustrate 
certain points liable to come up on any combina- 
tion. 

1. If the first lead is lower than a missing honor to 
draw it out and fails to do so, the second lead should 
usually be made with the same object in view. Let 
an unavoidable block come as early as possible, to 
enable your partner to lead back your suit. 

2. With a trick to lose and one to gain in a suit by 
playing its last cards, whether or not this should be 

160 



done must depend largely upon what you can hope 
from your partner if you refrain. 

3. It may pay temporarily to abandon a long suit 
while your partner has a return lead, if you have no 
re-entry, and if the declarer can block you, to try and 
put your partner in so that he can lead through the 
declarer. 



CONVENTIONAL PLAYS 

Chief Essentials : 

To offset as much as possible the declarer's advan- 
tage derived from playing two hands, the side players 
make use of various conventional plays, designed to 
utilize to the utmost their joint resources, and to 
mutually disclose important cards held. Aside from 
the conventional bids and doubles already given, and 
after the bidding is over, one or more cards led, played, 
or discarded in a conventional manner can be made to 
convey invaluable information, or to directly help a 
partner to best utilize his resources. No secret code 
between players is permissible. All the players are 
entitled to know what conventions are to be used. 

The club convention requires the player on the right 
of one bidding no trumps to hold the ace of clubs when 
he doubles, so that his partner can tell what suit to 
lead. This ace of clubs can be part of a set-up suit of 
clubs, or it can be in addition to another established 
suit. If the bid is not changed the doubler becomes 
the pone, or younger, and his partner becomes the 
leader, elder, or eldest hand, as he is variously termed. 
If the pone has already bid a suit he is not required 

162 



to hold the ace of clubs, since the suit he has named 
will be led. 

The fourth-best card is the conventional lead at 
undoubled no trumps when an honor cannot be led 
from great strength, if the leader's partner has not bid. 

The number of pips on any fourth-highest card led, 
deducted from ii, shows the number of cards outside 
the leader's hand which are higher than the one led. 
This is known as the "rule of eleven." If a 7 is led 
it shows that 4 higher cards are held by the remaining- 
players. If dummy holds 2 higher cards, and the 
leader's partner has 2, it proves that the declarer can- 
not win the trick from his own hand, and thus permits 
the leader's partner to save his higher cards if dummy 
"ducks" the 7 (plays a lower card than the 7). 

The most used and most useful signal is the "echo." 
It is given by playing or discarding an unnecessarily 
high card of a suit, followed on the next opportunity 
by a lower card of the same suit. 

It has four principal meanings, with several addition- 
al minor ones, which are distinguishable by the con- 
ditions under which it is given, according to whether 
a partner or declarer is playing, whether it is given at 
trumps or no trumps, and whether in the suit being 
led or coming as a discard from another suit. 

The "call for a suit" is used both at trumps and no 
tnmips, either when a partner or the declarer is lead- 
ing, at any time it becomes necessary to discard from 
one of the three suits not led. It is a request for 
partner to lead a card of the suit discarded at his first 
opportunity. If you "discard from weakness," echo 
in the suit desired. If following the more up-to-date 

12 163 



style of discarding, you can call for a suit either by 
echoing with its lowest two cards or by discarding a 
single card higher than the 7. If you "discard from 
strength," the first discard made, regardless of its 
denomination, shows the suit you desire led. In this 
latter case an echo shows that you do not want a suit 
led either because you are very weak in the suit 
from which you are discarding or because you want 
another suit led from which you cannot spare a dis- 
card. Since the echo may call for a suit or may re- 
quest that it be not led, and similarly with the discard 
of a single card, a player should always know how his 
partner discards before starting a game. 

The "plain-suit echo" is used only at no trumps, 
to show four or more cards of the suit your partner is 
leading. Play your second highest card on his first 
lead, when not holding winning cards, your next high- 
est card on his second lead, and so on until you have 
only two cards left. Your highest card is then played, 
and last of all your lowest card. With 10-8-5-3-2, 
you would play them in this order, 8-5-3-10-2. If 
you have only 8-5-3 they should be played 5-8-3. 
With only 5-3 they go thus, 3-5. The echo, followed 
by a still lower card thus shows more than 4 of the 
suit. The echo, then a higher card, shows just 4 of 
a suit. The first two cards in ascending order, fol- 
lowed by a lower card, show 3 of a suit. Only 2 of a 
suit gives no echo. In New York and some other 
places it is customary to play three cards in this man- 
ner, 3-5-8, instead of 5-8-3. Either style of play is 
equally good, and you should follow the one used locally. 

The " third-round call " is an echo from the leader's 
164 



partner when a king is led at trumps, to request that 
the suit be led 3 rounds, because the partner can win 
the third trick either by ruffing or with the top honor 
not held by the leader. 

The "trump-suit echo" is made in the trump suit 
itself to disclose to partner the fact that you hold 4 
trumps or more. It is only employed when your 
partner has doubled and is leading trumps. 

Carelessly "blocking" the run of a partner's suit 
constitutes one of the worst possible offenses. 

"Unblocking" is effected by means of the plain- 
suit echo, as already explained. Nothing else is needed 
except in cases where you hold honors in a partner's 
suit. If these honors are necessary to catch a card 
which otherwise would win a trick for dummy, they 
must be retained for that purpose. On a low lead from 
partner honors are used to try to win the trick and to 
return his lead. If not needed for this purpose, honors 
should be "underplayed" or "overplayed" on high 
cards led by your partner, both to avoid blocking him 
and to ease his mind concerning where they lie. If 
your suit contains over 4 cards, a high enough card 
must be retained to win over the last card of the suit 
which your partner can play, so that you can make 
good your last cards of the suit. Keep track of the 
cards played, or else your 5-card suit may block a still 
longer suit held by your partner. 

The "combination discard" is used both at trumps 
and without trumps. A card not higher than the 7 is 
discarded from a suit you do not want led to you. 
An echo in a suit, or a single card higher than the 7, 
shows that you desire the suit led to you. 

165 



Discarding an unnecessarily high card has long been 
a recognized call for a suit at Whist and Bridge. The 
combination discard merely sets a limit on what card 
shall be sufficiently high to constitute a call for a suit 
to be led, either at trumps or at no trumps. The limit 
now set includes all five honors, the supporting card 9, 
and the uncertain card 8. Lower cards are used in the 
manner customary in "weak-suit discard" to show that 
a suit is not wanted, while the echo can be made with 
cards of any denomination to call for a suit, in regula- 
tion fashion. If two discards are possible, their fall 
in ascending fashion, 8-9, shows the suit is not desired. 
Had it been wanted they would have been discarded 
in reverse order, 9-8. 

Details : 

CLUB CONVENTION 

Even the longest established club suit cannot always 
be successfully bid against another player's opening 
bid of 2-No Trumps. If the set-up clubs are held 
by elder he says nothing, but simply leads them out. 
If they are held by younger, particularly if he has no 
re-entry ace, he stands small chance of utilizing them, . 
unless his partner opens with a club. Ordinarily, this 
is the least likely thing to occur, as eldest hand is prob- 
ably very short-suited in clubs. The double is the 
only means of showing what is desired led. The double 
also serves the purpose of showing the assistance which 
a set-up suit can render if elder can overbid. 

If elder thinks it more profitable to defeat the adverse 
call than to bid, he must open with his highest club, 

166 



unless he holds an ace-king suit. In the latter case he 
can lead his king to show that he also holds the ace, 
then he must lead his best club. After clubs are run 
out younger leads back his best card of the suit of 
which his partner holds the ace. This lead through 
the declarer's strength may enable the holder of the 
ace to win a trick or two more than he could have if 
he were to lead out both his ace and king originally. 

If elder lacks a club he should do his best to put his 
partner in on some other suit. He cannot well bid on 
the strength of pone's clubs without a lead to them, 
as they would be useless side strength unless pone has 
re-entry. The best chance to 'put younger in, when 
lacking a club, is for elder to lead the highest card of 
his shortest suit. 

The club convention is utilized in a somewhat differ- 
ent manner from the spade convention under the 
"old count." In the latter case the spades could not 
be bid, but with the "new count" a bid of 2 -Clubs out- 
ranks i-No Trump bid, and can always be made on 
ability to win six tricks, or even five tricks when forced 
to bid. Unless a partner has bid, a player would be 
unwarranted in doubling a bid of i-No Trump, as 
fourth bidder, on less than six sure tricks. As he can 
legitimately bid 2-Clubs on that strength, the double 
would ordinarily be a mistake, which would merely 
serve to drive his opponents to a higher bid, which he 
could probably neither outbid nor defeat. On this 
account the club convention is not applicable to cases 
where less than 2-N0 Trump bids have been made. 
If the holder of the clubs sits at the right of the original 
bidder of no trumps, and has the ace of clubs and a 

167 



set-up suit capable of winning at least five sure tricks, 
but incapable of bidding 4-Clubs, he doubles. 

If possible re-entry is held in another suit, it is un- 
wise to double on only five tricks and trust partner 
for the other trick if the opponents' score is less than 
10. Two tricks will not put them out unless you 
double and they win. A free double occurs when their 
score is 10 or more, since the fulfilled contract will 
put them out even if not doubled. 

RULE OF ELEVEN 

R. F. Foster discovered this rule in 1881, and ap- 
plied it to Whist leads. For interpreting no-trump 
leads at Bridge and Auction it is at times invaluable, 
and ordinarily of some service. 

Your partner may lead the 8, for example, from 
K-J-9-8-5. Deducting 8 from 11, you realize that 
outside his hand there are only 3 cards capable of 
winning over his lead. Dummy shows Q-6-2, and 
you hold A- 1 0-4. It is at once evident that the de- 
clarer's hand is helpless, with not over 3 small cards 
of the suit, and that your partner must hold at least 
three others, including K-J-9. Consequently, you 
reserve your ace and win the first trick with your 10 
upon the play of the 2 from dummy. You return the 
lead with your ace, then lead your 4. Your partner 
overplays the 4 with the king, captures the queen ,. 
and has cleared his suit so that each of its remaining 
cards wins a trick. 

If the leader's fourth-best card is below a 6, the in- 
formation conveyed is small, but it always shows how 

168 



many high cards are lacking in his suit. This enables 
his partner to decide whether he holds a more readily 
establishable suit than the leader. 

Many fine players contend that "number-showing" 
leads of high cards should only be made at no trump, 
when the fourth-best card is lower than the 8. They 
maintain that the declarer gains greater advantage 
from the precise information conveyed than the pone 
does. To avoid the 8 lead from A-Q-io-8-5-3, they 
lead the 5 instead of the 8. They would not, however, 
lead their lowest card from over four merely to avoid 
the 8 lead, thus they would still lead the 8 from A-Q- 
10-8-5. 

They also hold that the lead of the 8 or 9 as a fourth- 
best card is apt to be mistaken for the * ' top-of-an- 
intermediate sequence lead," a custom also followed by 
many players. This latter lead consists of the top 
card of an intermediate sequence of two or more cards, 
provided this top card is not lower than the 8. Thus 
the 10 is led from A-Q- 10-9-3, and the 9 is led from 
K-J-9-8-4. 

All except a few old Whist players have abandoned 
the fourth-best lead against a declared trump. The 
question now arises whether it is best also to abandon 
it for the newer lead against a no trump. The old 
query of whether exact information is more valuable 
to partner or opponent is involved. A similar ques- 
tion arises every time you false-card or show a suit. 
Aside from the one question mentioned, the leads 
already given possess to the highest degree yet ob- 
tained the merit of making the most of cards held. 

If learning the game for general use, the regulation 
169 



leads will be found most useful to know. If playing 
in company where special leads are favored, it is always 
best to follow the local custom. 

When you are fighting a strong trump declaration 
your chances to establish a long suit, or to utilize any- 
thing but the ace and king of an established side suit, 
are small. The leads at trumps are quite different from 
no-trump leads, and a fourth-best card might readily 
be mistaken for the top of a low suit. It is accordingly 
best to lead your lowest card at trumps instead of 
your fourth best. 

CALL FOR A SUIT 

While you can call for a suit at any time, most other 
uses of the echo are restricted to occasions when your 
partner leads. It would ruin your chances to accom- 
plish certain ends if you foolishly informed the de- 
clarer of your desires while he was in the lead. 

The echo reverses the ordinary meaning of your sys- 
tem of discarding. Thus a single low card from a fol- 
lower of the discard from weakness means, "I do not 
want this suit"; but an echo reverses it by meaning, 
"I want this suit." The echo in general is a cry of 
"Partner, take notice!" and shows that something 
particular is desired. If given under conventional 
conditions, it is evident what is wanted. If given under 
unusual circumstances, it is intended to set your 
partner thinking what you would like to tell him if 
permitted to do so. 

A discard of the 8 followed by the 2 of hearts means 
with the weak-suit-discard advocate, "Partner, please 

170 



lead hearts when possible." To those discarding from 
strength it means, "Partner, do not lead hearts to 
me." In this latter case it is apt to mean also, "I have 
no very strong suit, play your own game." 

The rule of eleven and the echo are really two of the 
principal reasons why turned-down tricks cannot be 
reviewed. Partners are accordingly forced to watch 
each play, and to bear in mind what falls, especially 
their partner's cards. 

An honor can be used to make the echo in calling 
for a suit and in the plain-suit echo ; but it is irregular, 
and usually superfluous. 

PLAIN-SUIT ECHO 

This logical play of cards at no trumps serves the 
double purpose of disclosing to your partner the num- 
ber held and of avoiding blocking his suit. Having 
left until the last your highest original card and your 
lowest, you can win a trick at any time and still re- 
turn your partner's lead. 

Your echo in this case shows that the declarer can 
hold few of your partner's long suit, and offers your 
partner encouragement to continue the suit, which he 
might abandon if he believed the declarer's suit to be 
very long and yours to be very short. 

THIRD-ROUND CALL 

An opening lead of a plain-suit king at trumps always 
means that its leader has also the next card to it — 
either the ace or the queen, or both. You accordingly 

171 



know that your partner has the ace if he opens with 
the king when you have the queen. Vice versa, you 
know that he holds the queen if you have the ace. 

If you hold three cards to the ace or queen when 
the king is led, you know that your partner can win 
the first two untrumped rounds of the suit, and your 
echo informs him that you are able to win the third 
round unless trumped. 

When you hold only two cards of the suit from which 
a king is led, if you are both able and willing to trump 
the third round, you echo to state that fact. 

It is useless to echo if dummy's suit is shorter than 
your own. It is also useless if you and dummy each 
hold only two cards of the suit if his trumps all exceed 
your own in denomination. In either case dummy 
would win by rufifing, unless the declarer held the 
queen, and a trick would be lost through the echo. 

If you and dummy jointly hold more than 7 cards 
of the suit, you should not echo, even if you hold ace 
or queen. If you and dummy jointly hold 8 cards 
of the suit, you know that your partner and the 
declarer have between them only five of the suit. 
Consequently, either your partner cannot lead a third 
round or else the declarer can ruff it. 

The leader must disregard the echo if he and dummy 
originally had 9 or more of the suit, since his partner 
and the declarer can hold only 4 of the suit between 
them, and the declarer can ruff the third round over 
the pone. There are many cases where it is desirable 
to keep on leading a suit to weaken the declarer by 
forcing him to ruff, but these cases lie outside the 
province of the convention in question. 

172 



The third - round call, as outlined here, has safe- 
guards not employed in the ordinary " call-for-a-ruff " 
and "down-and-out" signals, and for that reason is 
to be preferred to them. About 13 chances in 100 deals 
arise where it should be used. 

At times a trump is too valuable for other purposes 
to spare it for ruffing. There is never any obligation 
upon you to ruff in such a case, and you have merely 
to play your cards without using the echo. 

There are cases where you can call for a ruff by 
echoing, even if your partner has not led the king; 
but they are exceptional, and ordinarily merely result 
in having the declarer lead trumps, whereas had you 
refrained from showing a desire to ruff he might have 
held off. 

TRUMP-SUIT ECHO 

This is to doubled trumps what the plain-suit echo 
is to no trumps, except it is rare to hold 4 trumps, with 
the declarer possessing enough to declare and your 
partner having sufficient strength to double. It can, 
of course, come in some such way as this, with hearts 
trumps : 

Declarer has Hearts, A- 1 0-8-6-4; Clubs, 8-5; Dia- 
monds, A-K-Q; Spades, 10-9-2; eldest hand has 
Hearts, K-Q-J-g; Clubs, A-K-J; Diamonds, 6-4-3; 
Spades, A-K-Q, while you hold nothing of conse- 
quence except the remaining four small trumps. 

The declarer judges his hand to be worth 5, and 
possibly 6 tricks. Eldest hand rates his hand as worth 
at least 6 tricks, and probably more. He sees a chance 
to win a heavy score and doubles. Your partner 

173 



opens with the king of trumps, and you echo with 
your lowest two trumps to show that you have 4 trumps. 
Some players use the "three-trump echo," but it is 
not best to echo when holding only three trumps, 
unless sure that your partner will understand that 
you echo from three trumps. 

CALL FOR TRUMPS 

During the play of certain hands a player can see 
an advantage if his partner will lead trumps through 
the declarer's strength. An echo in a plain suit which 
is being led by the declarer cannot be mistaken for 
any other signal, and is accordingly used by a few 
players as a call for partner to lead trumps. This is a 
call not generally understood by American players, 
and should not be used with a strange partner. 

CALL FOR ORIGINAL SUIT 

While the declarer is leading at no trumps an echo 
in his suit means, "Partner, lead your original suit." 
It sometimes happens that eldest hand is not very 
strong in his best suit; and if declarer wins the first 
trick, eldest hand may abandon that suit in hope of 
finding pone's best suit. If the original suit is really 
pone's best, this call to encourage his partner is very 
useful. 

UNBLOCKING 

More tricks are lost by underplay than by overplay. 
Never hesitate to take away your partner's trick with 

174 



a card of his suit not actually needed to set it up. He 
is entitled to know where all the missing high cards 
that you hold are, aside from the danger of blocking 
him if you hold up too long. 

Unblocking methods apply especially to no trumpers, 
although they can be used equally well at trumps after 
trumps are exhausted, or if it is desirable to "force" 
the declarer (make him unwillingly trump a suit by 
continually leading its winning cards). This latter 
process is a splendid way of weakening the declarer's 
hand, but should never be attempted when the ' ' weak 
hand" (the non-declaring adversary) can ruff, while 
the strong hand can follow or discard. 

With a shorter suit than your partner's a high card 
must be held up in a case like this: 

Queen is led from Q-J-io (or Q-J-g) and others, 
dimimy shows K-7-5 , you hold A-8-2 . Unless dummy's 
king is played on the first or second round the ace 
must be retained to catch the king, although doing 
so will block the suit. It is better to have you block 
the suit and win the trick than to have d-ammy block 
it and win both the trick and the lead. 

In a case like the following, however, you should 
not hold up a high card, since dummy can outwait you : 
Dummy shows Q-6-3, you hold K-7. Whether ace 
or fourth-best card is led, you must put on your king. 
If you hold off, your partner may abandon the suit, 
particularly if the declarer should win the first trick. 
In any event, holding back your king will block the suit. 
The queen will probably be withheld until the third 
round and block it again. Moreover, if a fourth-best 
card is led, failure to put on your king may enable the 

175 



declarer to win the first trick with a low card, perhaps 
a singleton. Possibly the declarer holds both a low 
card capable of winning over the fourth-best lead and 
the ace; in this case he can win three tricks in your 
partner's suit if you fail to put up your king. If you 
hold ace and another, instead of above cards, the ace 
must go up the first time. 

Holding either ace or king, with one or two others, 
with three to the queen in dummy, on a jack lead do 
not overplay if the queen is held back. It is better 
for you to block the suit than to have it done by the 
declarer. If you block your partner's suit you will 
try to find his re-entry; but the declarer will try to 
avoid it. The jack may be from A-J-io with others, 
or from a suit headed by J- 10-9. In the first case 
your holding back the king will result in your winning 
every trick in the stiit. In the second case, the de- 
clarer will either be forced to put up his ace or to lose 
the trick. 

If the hands are reversed, and you hold three to the 
queen, while dummy has a short suit headed by the 
ace or king, play your second-best card on the jack 
lead, and your queen, in regulation fashion, on your 
partner's second lead of the suit, even if dummy's ace 
or king goes on. This is to avoid blocking the suit, 
and to show where the queen lies. The only reason 
for refusing to play it the first time is the possibility 
that your partner, having no long suit of the slightest 
value, has done his best by giving you a supporting 
lead from a short suit. In this case playing your queen 
on the first round would merely aid the declarer in 
establishing the suit. 

176 



With 5 or 6 cards of a suit, you probably have a 
longer suit than your partner; unless your partner 
leads a very low card you cannot be certain of this 
until the declarer is forced to make his first discard, or 
unless dummy's suit is long enough to prove that the 
leader cannot hold over four of the suit. 

In such a case, if your partner leads winning cards, 
do not interfere with him. He is clearing the suit for 
you. If a card led is not certain to win the trick you 
must overplay, if certainly able to win it. When you 
can outplay all your partner's remaining cards take 
the lead away from him. If you hold the winning 
card you had better take away his lead on the second 
round, or he may believe the declarer is waiting to 
win the third round. 

With your partner holding A-K-Q-J-7, when you 
have 10-8-6-4-3-2, your regular play of 8-6-4-3 will 
cause your 10 to win over his 7 on the fifth round. If, 
however, he held A-K-Q-7, you would have to be on 
the watch to play your 10 on the fourth round, instead 
of your 3, or your suit would be blocked. 

THE DISCARD 

The most disputed question in Bridge was doubtless 
as to what constituted the best system of discarding, 
the one combining to the greatest degree protection to 
the hand, information to partner, and simplicity. 

Arguments often arose as to the relative chances of 
loss by discarding from long or from short suits. If 
discards are to be made from a suit of given length, 
regardless of what it contains, a 3 -card suit will suffer 

177 



more severely than either longer or shorter suits. 
Two-card suits and 4-card suits are next worst, and 
suffer about equally. Next come i-card suits and 5- 
card suits, which also suffer about equally from dis- 
cards. Six-card suits suffer less damage than any 
previously mentioned; 7 -card suits still less, and so on. 

As a matter of fact, discards are not made wholly 
upon the length of the suit. Each player combines 
with his style of discard his personal judgment of the 
hand in question. Considerable experience is required 
to tell even approximately what can best be spared 
from some hands. It is folly to hoard up all the 
cards of a long suit without re-entry cards if your 
partner cannot put you in. Late in the hand some one 
will probably be forced to lead the suit, but in the 
meantime all chance to stop another suit, or to help 
your partner establish his long suit may have been 
wasted by discards from your weak suits. On the 
other hand, if the chances to play out a long suit are 
promising, discards had better be risked elsewhere. 
With ace and queen of a suit, wherein you hold the 
"doubleton" king, showing in dummy on your right, 
and the declarer leading a long suit, it may be neces- 
sary to "blank" your king to save guards to another 
suit. If the ace of a suit of which you hold the king 
lies at your left, with Q-J-io at your right, you cannot 
well spare even one of several guards to your king. 
In general, the shorter a suit is with less than 3 cards, 
or the longer it is with over 3 cards, the safer it is for 
discards to be made from it. 

The chief flaw in the weak-suit discard is inability 
to call for a suit with a single card of moderate de- 

178 



nomination. The principal failing of the discard from 
strength is that two cards are necessary to show that a 
suit is not wanted. The " seven discard " is frequently 
inadequate, because a suit you do not want contains 
no card smaller than the 7, or because a suit you want 
cannot spare a card higher than the 6. 

The combination discard combines the best features 
of the weak discard, the strong discard, and the seven 
discard, without having as an offset any particularly 
bad features of its own. Two cards of any denomina- 
tion call for a suit if played in reverse order, or reject 
a suit if played in normal order. The six lowest cards 
discarded singly reject a suit, the seven highest cards 
discarded singly call for a suit. 

The first discard made is usually the most impor- 
tant to note. Late discards should not be considered, 
unless made very emphatic by an echo, or by the 
unnecessary discard of an honor, since it often happens 
that late in a hand cards of moderate size must be dis- 
carded from a suit not desired, to protect another suit 
from attack. 

If you note that your partner does not discard from 
a particular suit you should try to guard the one from 
which he is discarding, and discard from the one he 
appears to be guarding. 

Always remember that a discard from great strength 
means only the loss of a single trick; but unguarding 
a weak suit, or failure to save one or two cards of your 
partner's strong suit, may mean the loss of several 
tricks. 

13 



ELDEST HAND 

Chief Essentials : 

Eldest hand, or elder, is the player on declarer's 
left, the first player to lead a card after the bidding 
is closed. He is called to play to the second trick as: 

1. Leader, or first hand, if he wins the first trick. 

2. Second hand, if the declarer wins the first trick. 

3. Third hand, if the pone wins the first trick. 

4. Fourth hand, if dummy wins the first trick. 

Elder's proper card of a given suit to play often differs 
with the position in which he is to play. As briefly 
as possible his duty in the four possible positions is: 
First hand, to use conventional leads if partner has 
not bid, and to lead the highest of his partner's suit 
if he has bid; second hand, play low; third hand, play 
high; fourth hand, win if possible. Exceptions to 
these general rules will be noted later. 

FIRST-HAND PLAY 

After the opening lead eldest hand should continue to 
lead winning cards if he has them, in most cases; but 

180 



it is folly to go on with a losing suit unless for a special 
purpose. 

At trumps you can lead through dummy's strength, 
try to give partner a ruff, attempt to establish a cross- 
ruff, force the strong hand, or lead a small trump to 
prevent dimimy from using a weak trump or two in 
ruffing a short suit. 

At no trumps your original suit had better be con- 
tinued, unless your partner has refused to lead it back 
and you desire to substitute his suit, or unless you find 
too great adverse strength, even if pone returns your 
lead. 

Should dimmiy have a nearly established suit at no 
trumps, with an ace and small card for his only re- 
entry, while you hold the king and others of his re- 
entry suit, lead out your king, to prevent anything 
except the ace winning. If dummy passes the king 
lead out your small card to complete your removal of 
the re-entry ace. 

SECOND-HAND PLAY 

The following rules are helpful to both eldest hand 
and pone at second-hand play. The former can use 
more discretion than the latter in their application, 
because the cards coming next after the pone are 
concealed. 

1. Holding a fourchette over a card led never play lower 
than its upper card. (Thus, play the 7 on the 6 led if you 
hold the 5 also.) 

2. Cover an honor led, even if the dummy can outplay it, 
unless a special reason exists for ducking — such as possessing 
the lowest cards of a long suit headed by a single honor. 



3- It is generally best to cover a card led in sequence to 
those in a strong dummy. It may enable your partner to 
win a later trick. 

4. It is useless to cover in above case if dummy is so strong 
that no hope exists for your partner to win a trick in the suit. 
(Your only chance lies in the declarer running out of the suit, 
so that dummy will finally be forced to lead a losing card up to 
you. Thus under No. 3 it is best to cover the declarer's 10 
with the queen from three, when dummy shows A-K-J-X, 
because four to the 9 in partner's hand can win a trick. 
Under No. 3 it is useless to cover the declarer's 10 with queen 
from four, when dummy shows A-K-J-X-X-X. It is im- 
possible for either pone or declarer to hold over two of the 
suit with eleven cards in sight. It is possible that the de- 
clarer is leading a singleton, and, failing to drop the queen 
from your hand, he may overplay his 10 and make your 
queen good for the third or fourth round, depending upon 
whether he overplays with his jack or king on the first 
round.) 

5. Hold command of the opponent's long suit at no trumps 
as long as possible, to run their short hand out of leads. 

6. Do not cover a clearing-card lead with a winning card 
unless holding back may cause you to lose it later. (On a 
queen led up to dummy's J— 10-9-X-X with the ace un- 
played do not cover with the king from three or four. 
Your partner may have the ace. If the declarer has the 
ace he cannot catch your king, and by holding back you 
can probably prevent him from establishing the suit.) 

7. Holding 2 honors in sequence and a low card, "split 
honors" on a low lead by covering with the lower honor. 

8. Save honors barely guarded, like K-X, Q-X— X, 
J-X-X-X, at the first opportunity. Hold back well-guarded 
honors to give your partner a chance to win with a less- 
favored card. 

9. Play low on a low lead, unless you can split honors or 
cover with a card from a fourchette, or can save a badly- 
guarded honor. 

10. Play the smallest of a long series of low cards which 



fail to hold a fourchette over a low lead. The higher cards 
may later win a trick. 

11. Win a trick cheaply to save your partner from playing 
a higher card. 

12. Do not hesitate to sacrifice a high card to force one still 
higher out of dummy, if doing so will enable either you or 
your partner to win a later trick. 

Always know what you are going to do and play 
quickly, but avoid the appearance of unnatural haste. 
Both hesitation and ostentatious assurance in playing 
cause the declarer to ponder the probable cause. 



THIRD-HAND PLAY 

As the only cards to be played after eldest hand are 
exposed, third-hand play for eldest hand is very simple. 

The general rule to be followed at trumps or at no 
trumps is to win with the lowest possible card. If 
unable to win, take care not to let diunmy win too 
cheaply. 

The same rules for echoing and imblocking govern 
both eldest hand and pone. 

FOURTH-HAND PLAY 

The last play to a trick is usually to win it as cheaply 
as possible. As already explained, occasions arise 
where a trick should not be won at no tnimps, but 
they very rarely occur at trumps. 

Suppose at no trumps that dummy holds originally 
J-10-9-X-X-X-X clubs, and only a single outside 
card of re-entry. The declarer has the ace and queen 

183 



only. You hold three to the king. Pone has a single 
club. The declarer leads the ace, followed by the 
queen. If you play the king on his queen he will use 
dummy's card of re-entry to win 5 club tricks. By 
holding back the king dummy's hand becomes worth 
only a single trick with the card of re-entry, instead of 
being worth six tricks. 



Details : 

FIRST-HAND PLAY 

Dummy's cards, and those already fallen, are ad- 
ditional guides to the best play for eldest hand after 
the first lead. These may decide him to continue 
with his original suit, or to open another one. At 
trumps he must especially avoid permitting the weak 
hand to ruff. Either at trimips or at no trumps great 
care must be used not to play off winning cards, and 
thus leave the rest of the suit set up for the declarer's 
future use. At no trumps it is particularly bad to 
open new suits for the declarer, and assist him in their 
establishment by letting go cards which otherwise 
would block his play. Your partner may have some 
use for re-entry even if you have not. At no trumps, 
especially, discontinue leading a suit only when it is 
evidently contrary to your interests to continue, 
either because of too great adverse strength or because 
another much better suit is disclosed. 

Your partner may fail to return your suit for three 
reasons: because he has none, because dummy dis- 
plays too great strength in the suit, or because pone 

184 



believes his suit to be better than yours, since more 
tricks are to be had from it, or because of its easier 
estabhshment. 

You cannot expect further assistance on your suit 
if pone has opened one of his own. The first thing to 
attempt is to discover why your partner opened the 
new suit. The answer must He either in dummy's or 
pone's cards. If the exposed cards of your suit are not 
especially strong, the change of suit comes because pone's 
cards demand it, and his lead should show as clearly as 
possible whether it is because he holds great strength 
in the suit he opens or because he holds none of your 
suit. In the latter case he is probably leading up to 
dummy's greatest weakness, trusting to luck to gain 
re-entry for you. If it is apparent that the pone is 
merely doing his best to assist, you can go on with 
your own suit. When it is clear that he has a better 
suit than yours the change of plan must be made on 
your return lead. If the case is doubtful, you had 
better abandon your suit, if it is at all weak, to see what 
his suit can offer. With a case like the following you 
should resume your own suit at your first chance. 
Eldest hand leads the 4th best from A-J-9-8-5-3, 
dummy plays low from K-6, pone overplays with the 
10, and declarer wins with the queen. The declarer 
opens a suit of which dummy has ace-queen, and loses 
on the finesse to pone's king. Your partner opens the 
only suit. of which you hold an outside ace, and puts 
you in. As you have five straight tricks in your own 
suit, it is your duty to resume it. Later on you can 
lead your partner's suit. 

Had the declarer won the first trick with the 10 
185 



and left dummy over you with K-Q-7, the case would 
be very different; with your sole re-entry gone your 
best plan might be to play the ace of your original suit, 
and to abandon the rest of it for pone's suit. 

Before making a change of suit it is ordinarily best 
to win a sure trick in your first suit if it is unlikely to 
be opened again; but it is un\\dse to do this if you 
have no lower stop, because that leaves the suit in 
such condition that the declarer can make an easy 
trick or two. If your original suit is quite apt to be 
reopened by the declarer, a desirable change of suit 
should be made before playing your winning card from 
the original suit, since it affords you re-entry for future 
use. 

In case your opening lead has been lost your partner 
may have called for a suit in his discards to the de- 
clarer's leads. If you happen to re-enter before your 
partner does, it is often quite difficult to know whether 
to continue your own suit, or to lead the one requested 
by pone. His call may merely show a desire for a lead 
through dummy, because the latter overtops all pone's 
honors, or it may indicate ability to win a single trick, 
or it may possibly show a solid suit. If your own suit 
requires the active co-operation of your partner to be 
valuable, it is best to answer the call at once, unless 
you can see that the declarer must lead pone's suit 
later, and that pone cannot have any great strength 
in it. Nothing less than a surety on your own suit 
warrants disregarding a possible call from a solid suit. 
The ace is the best discard to show such a condition, 
and must never be disregarded beyond the time neces- 
sary to lead out your own winning cards in other suits. 

186 



While your partner's discards can be made most 
significant, those of the declarer are apt to be pur- 
posely misleading. 

A return of your no-trump lead by pone merely means 
that he lays no claim to having a better suit of his own, 
beyond that it is quite non-committal. All his plays 
must be studied to determine what he desires for his 
share in the game. A return of your lead at trumps 
with a low card, instead of a lead to some great weak- 
ness in dummy, probably shows ability to ruff the third 
round of your suit. His lead of a new suit up to pro- 
nounced strength in dummy should show a singleton 
at trumps. If dummy's suit is very long it may pos- 
sibly be done in the belief that you can ruff. 

The usual rule, when having nothing very particular 
from which to lead, and being in ignorance of the 
pone's desires, is to lead through dummy's strength 
in plain suits. 

At no trumps the declarer presumably has strength 
in at least three suits, or abnormal strength in one and 
something in one or two more. A lead through 
dummy's unbid strength is consequently less apt to be 
of advantage to the pone than a lead through a very 
weak suit of dummy's. In the first instance the de- 
clarer probably possesses the missing strength, while 
in the latter case it is usually divided between declarer 
and pone. 

Pone's failure to return your lead with a card higher 
than dummy holds of a low suit should mean that the 
declarer has all the missing strength. An original lead 
of pone up to K-J-X in dummy, with much weaker 
suits also there, is apt to be made hoping that you 

187 



hold the ace and can then return the lead through to 
pone's queen. 

Ordinarily, the best card to lead through strength is 
the top of a sequence or the highest from small cards. 

SECOND-HAND PLAY 

Many consider that the correct ''second" play of 
eldest hand is the most puzzling of all. In some in- 
stances it is little better than a guess to know whether 
to sacrifice a high card in the hope of aiding a partner's 
unknown hand or whether to take a long chance that it 
may win later if held back. The detection of what the 
declarer is attempting when he opens a suit often 
shows what you should play to most hamper him. He 
may desire to clear a suit; merely to put the lead in 
dummy's hand in order to open up another suit, and 
have the lead come up to his own tenace; to deprive 
your side of a re-entry card, or to make re-entry for 
dummy; to pull out your trumps; to gain a ruff from 
dummy's weak hand; to start a cross-ruff; to lead up 
to dummy's strength on one suit, and back to his own 
on another suit. Always try to discover just what he 
is attempting to do, as it will sometimes enable you 
to defeat his purpose by departing from a general rule. 

Low-card leads toward low cards are always objects 
of suspicion. At trumps they probably mean a single- 
ton with the declarer. At either trumps or no trumps 
they may be led hoping that you will win and lead 
your opening suit up to the declarer. If you could be 
embarrassed by such a lead, either you can win and 
lead another suit through dummy's strength or you 

i88 



can duck and trust your partner to lead your suit 
through the declarer. 

The mathematical chances that missing cards lie 
one or more with your partner are: 

1 card missing, even chances 

2 cards " 3 in 4 " 



As the declarer has deliberately chosen the trump, in- 
stead of having it come by chance, usually he has 
picked a time when he holds more than the average 
of its strength. On that account it would be foolish 
to calculate that if neither you nor dummy held either 
the ace or the king of trumps, your partner had 3 in 
4 chances to hold one or both of them. 

In certain cases where the declarer has made a high 
shut-cut bid, thus preventing your partner from bid- 
ding, it is perfectly right, however, to believe that pone 
has a full 3 in 4 chances to hold one or both of two miss- 
ing plain-suit aces, and equal chances that he has the 
missing ace of a plain suit which you contemplate 
leading. At no trumps be wary of probabilities as to 
the nature of high-card distribution, since a wise de- 
clarer has chosen a time favorable to his own hand. 
Probabilities are extremely useful, but only when 
utilized with perfect understanding of what they mean 
and when they can be taken at face value. 

The following are examples of constantly recurring 
cases where individual thought 4s needed to make the 
best play of eldest hand's cards on leads by the de- 
clarer. 

Suppose that the declarer leads the jack up to 
189 



dummy's ace-queen-7-4 when you hold king-9-8-5. 
You can see 9 cards. It is possible that your partner 
holds 4 cards to the 10; but if the declarer has another 
card of the suit to lead it is certain that the pone can- 
not stop the suit unless you force out the ace. Even 
if the declarer has all the remaining cards of the suit, 
your 9 must eventually win a trick if you cover with 
the king and force the ace; consequently, you should 
do so. This comes under Rule 3 (Second-Hand Play) 
in a general way, but belongs more especially to Rule 
12. If dimimy had shown the 10 also, you would not 
have covered, because the queen-10-7 would still 
dominate your 9-8-5, and your partner could not 
possibly win a trick. This would come under Rule 4. 
Suppose jack is led up to a ragged suit in dummy 
like ace-9-6-2, and you hold queen-8-5-4. You do 
not know where the king-i 0-7-3 lie. If pone holds 
the king, even as a singleton, either his king or your 
queen is bound to win a trick. If declarer holds the 
king he may attempt to finesse the jack, or if you do 
not cover he may overplay with the ace and lead back 
to the king in his own hand. If he also holds the 10 
and another he may. then attempt a finesse of the 9. 
The chances are better than even that the pone holds 
either king or 10, and he may have the latter doubly 
guarded. If he does hold the latter combination ' the 
declarer has only one more card to lead, so that your 
queen will be safe. If declarer has only one more it 
is fairly certain that it cannot be the king, or he would 
have led it first. It is useless to play the queen, under 
all the possibilities. This is covered by the exception 
under Rule 2. It also comes under Rules 5, 6, and 8. 

190 



Under Rule 7 you would play the queen from 
king-queen-X if a low card were led up to ace-jack- 
X-X in dummy. If you were to play the "king instead 
of the queen you would fool your partner, who would 
credit the declarer with holding the queen. Later on 
you might greatly desire entrance, but your partner, 
believing you did not hold command of that suit, 
would not lead it to you. As fooling the declarer 
would be useless, the queen and not the king should be 
played. 

A player should be careful about trying to fool ex- 
pert players with such copy-book strategy as the fol- 
lowing: ** Holding ace-queen-X on the declarer's lead 
up to dummy's king-jack-X-X, play the ace to hide 
the location of the queen. Here you would not want 
a lead from either pone or declarer through your queen 
up to dummy's tenace. Your partner will not lead the 
suit, and the declarer, being unable to place you with 
the queen, will probably play the king on the next 
round instead of finessing through you. If you ducked 
on the first round he would doubtless finesse the jack, 
then he would know that you must hold the queen 
and probably the ace also, so that he would lead 
through you at the first opportunity. This is an ex- 
ceptional case, where you hope to win two tricks in- 
stead of one by a little strategy." This attempt to 
fool the declarer will quite likely work out if he is a 
novice; but an experienced player will surely credit 
the "queen to you when you play low on his second 
lead. Whether you should play the ace or low on his 
first lead must depend upon whether or not you want 
to be in. 

191 



While most of the rules relate particularly to no 
trumpers, at trumps it is sometimes better to wait 
before playing a high card of even a plain suit. As an 
example, suppose you hold ace-X when a small card 
is led up to dummy's king-jack. The chances are 
about 80 to I that declarer has more of the suit. If he 
holds the queen and you hold back the ace on the first 
round, nothing is lost. If the declarer does not hold 
the queen and you play low, he will probably attempt 
a finesse of the jack, and your partner will win with the 
queen. 

Another case, even at trumps, where it is ordinarily 
better to hold back the ace on the first round is where 
any card lower than the king is led by declarer, with 
not less than 2 small cards in dummy. If your partner 
has the king he will win; if the declarer has it your 
ace will still be good. 

As a general thing at trumps it is useless to hold back 
from covering an honor, especially if the dummy and 
yourself jointly have over 6 of a plain suit led, or if 
either of you will be able to ruff on the third round. 
There are special cases, however, where it will pay to 
hold back on account of what you believe partner may 
hold, or in the hope of later on forcing ruffs from the 
declarer by leading the winning cards of a plain suit. 
If jack (or 10) is led through your suit containing king 
(or queen) with one or two low cards to dummy's ace-io 
(or ace-jack), you are often advised to cover, in order 
to force the ace and thus leave the queen (or king) 
good, if the pone holds it at least once guarded. As a 
matter of fact, if you do not cover and the dummy's 
ace is not used in overplay, your partner will win 

192 



even with a singleton queen (or king). If the de- 
clarer gets cold feet at the last moment and overplays 
with the ace, your king will be good. When you hold 
either the king or queen, and the other does not show 
in dummy and is not led, your best chance is to wait, 
even if you have only a doubleton. 

If you hold queen-jack-X on a leaa up to ace-king- 
10, or if you hold king-jack-X on a lead up to ace- 
queen- lo in dimimy, it cannot harm your partner if 
in both cases you split by playing the higher honor to 
give the impression that you do not hold the jack. It 
will often result in diunmy's leading back his winning 
card instead of going to the bother of again leading 
through you, thus leaving your jack high. 

Similarly, at trumps when you have two such cards 
in sequence, as jack-io or 10-9, if obliged to finally 
lose one of them to leads of better cards by the de- 
clarer's side, play the higher one if you see a chance 
to discard the lower one later on, so as to ruff that 
suit. This is done to make the declarer stop leading 
the suit under the impression that you will ruff the 
next time. It is useless to attempt if the declarer is 
going to start leading trumps, but you may hold so 
many that he will not try it. This false carding will 
fool your partner into leading the suit under the im- 
pression that you can ruff, so it should not be done 
unless you believe you can discard the last of that 
suit before your partner can lead it. Sometimes, how- 
ever, it may come in handy to remember. 

Probably the most troublesome thing to the majority 
of players is to know when to play the king, if they are 
led through by the declarer, with the ace-queen and 

193 



others showing in dummy, or when the queen is led 
and the ace shows in dummy. The best thing ordi- 
narily to do is to follow the general rule of playing high 
from 2 cards and low from more than that number. 
General niles 2 and 4, previously given, cover the case. 
If your king is singly guarded and there is a chance 
that pone may later be able to take a trick, you had 
better cover the queen ; but if a low card comes through, 
and the ace, queen, jack, and others show, it is best to 
hold off until the second round. 

Suppose that you hold king-X-X at no trumps, a 
small card comes through and dummy shows ace- 
queen-jack-X-X but lacks the 10. Some players put 
on the king, because they say that if the declarer has 
another card to lead the king must surely fall, because 
the ace will be led on the third round. With nine cards 
in sight the pone has in 100 chances 22 to hold all four 
missing ones, 27 to hold three, 27 to hold two, 22 to 
hold one, and 2 that he holds none at all. Unless he 
holds four he cannot save the 10. There are 22 chances 
in 100 that the declarer has not another card to lead, 
and if he has you force him to use up a re-entry card 
to lead it if he finesses the dummy's jack. By holding 
back the king, if the pone has four to the 10, the only 
way the declarer can act is to abandon the suit or make 
his second lead direct from dummy, which will result 
in your side making both king and 10 good. At first 
sight it might appear that it would be useless to hold 
back the king, still we can see that it adds nothing to 
your chances to play it, and you may win an extra 
trick by waiting. 

If the ace and small cards only appear in dummy 
194 



and the queen is led through your king, a careful 
analysis of what will happen with the jack and lo 
variously located in the hand of declarer or pone and 
accompanied by varying numbers of cards shows the 
following general rule can be made : Cover the queen 
in each case except where, your suit is longer than 
dimimy's. In that case, of Course, your king will be 
good after the ace is played. : - , 

Similarly, if you hold three or more small cards and 
the queen, with jack led, the king in dummy and the 
ace invisible, you had better cover unless you hold two 
more in your suit than dummy shows. ~ 

14 



PONE 

Chief Essentials: 

FIRST-HAND PLAY 

The pone, also called younger and yotingest hand, 
has two advantages over his partner in leading — eldest 
hand's opening lead shows what to expect from him, 
and dummy's cards are exposed. 

As pone you are tmder no obligations to return your 
partner's lead at trumps tinder the following conditions : 
if you hold winning cards in other suits; if you have 
high honor sequences or three honors in a different suit ; 
if you can lead up to pronounced weakness in dimimy. 
If 5^our partner has bid and has then opened a differ- 
ent suit, it is probable that he wants a lead of his suit 
through the declarer. Where none of the above rea- 
sons exist for changing the suit you should return the 
opening suit, unless elder led a strengthening card to 
show weakness in the smt. In the latter case think 
whether he can have a tenace in another suit, or a 
guarded single honor, to which he wants a lead. Unless 
a decided advantage can come through opening a new 
suit, it is best to lead back a winning card of the first 
suit, and also is usually best to do so if you believe that 
your partner holds its next winning card or can ruff. 

In general, return your best card of your partner's 
196 



suit. At no trumps be careful neither to return nor 
to discard the lowest card you hold of his suit unless 
he holds fewer of them than you do. 

At no trumps it is often better to return your partner's 
lead, even up to dummy's major tenace (ace-queen), 
than to open a new suit in which you hold nothing. 
Your only excuse for opening a new suit, provided you 
can return your partner's lead, is a belief that the new 
suit can be established more easily, or contains more 
tricks, and can be set up in the same number of leads 
as your partner's suit. If you decline to return your 
partner's suit you must depend upon your own re- 
sources to set up your new suit. 

Use regulation leads in opening a new suit, just as 
eldest hand would. Avoid leads to or through an op- 
ponent's hand when he holds cards in that suit which 
are desirable to lead from. 

In leading up to dummy's weakness lead a strength- 
ening card if it wiU force the declarer to play a card 
higher than the exposed hand shows. Thus lead the 
9 from K-9-4-3 if dummy shows 8-5, in order to force 
a better card from the declarer. If your partner can- 
not beat the 8, your lead prevents dummy's cards from 
winning and coming back through your hand. The 
strengthening 9 also prevents your partner from lead- 
ing back the suit in case he should win with the jack 
over declarer's 10, from A-Q-io. 

SECOND-HAND PLAY 

The pone has little opportunity to deviate from 
stereot3'ped forms of second-hand play, because third- 
hand cards are always concealed. 

197 



With the exception of Rule 3, the twelve rules al- 
ready given under "Second-hand Play for Eldest 
Hand" also apply to pone's case, by making the word 
' ' declarer ' ' read * ' dummy ," and vice versa . Caution has 
to be employed in surmises as to what the declarer holds. 

On a low card always play an honor which you would 
have led had you been eldest hand opening that suit 
from strength. For example, jack from A-J-io-X, 
or 10 from K-J-io-X-X. In following from a sequence, 
like Q-J-io-X, remember that while you lead its top 
card (the queen) you must follow with its bottom 
card (the 10). 

At trumps, precisely as if you were eldest hand, it 
is generally best to win your tricks as soon as possible 
before the suit can be ruffed. At no trumps hold back 
winning cards of opponents' suits as long as possible, 
both because it gives eldest hand a chance to make 
his high cards good and because it may result in using 
up opponents' valuable re-entry cards. 

THIRD-HAND PLAY 

This part of the game is much more difficult for the 
pone than for eldest hand. The former has the de- 
clarer's strength over his cards, and the fourth-hand 
cards are concealed, while eldest hand plays with full 
information as to what dummy holds. 

The general Whist rule of "third hand high" or- 
dinarily governs the play. If your highest card is one 
of a sequence, like king-queen-jack, you will play the 
jack. If it wins you will return the king. If that 
wins you will lead your queen. If your jack, from 



queen-jack, loses to the declarer's ace, your partner 
will know that you hold the queen, or the declarer 
would have won with the queen in preference to using 
the ace. Should you play the queen from queen-jack, 
your partner could not tell that you held the lower 
honor, and would credit its possession to the declarer. 

If you hold queen-9-3 and dummy plays 8 from 
jack- 1 0-8, you will play the 9. Your cards and 
dummy's are in sequence, and you play in regulation 
manner the lowest card of the combined sequence. 
The play permits you to retain the queen over dummy's 
jack, and still renders your holdings perfectly clear 
to yoiu" partner. If the declarer wins with the ace or 
king, it is self-evident in the first case that you hold 
the queen; but in the second case it might appear 
possible that the declarer is false-carding and holds 
the queen as well. 

An absolute rule for third hand is, never finesse 
against a partner. This means that you must play 
your highest card on your partner's lead, except in 
two cases — viz.: 

1. When partner leads a supporting card on the chance 
of striking your strong suit, or leads a suit in which you have 
indicated strength either by bid or discards. He is then 
merely trying to assist you. The suit is yours to play as 
you deem best. 

2. When dummy shows a card impossible for your partner 
to catch. You can hold back a high card to prevent dummy 
from winning. This play aids your partner in the final 
establishment of his suit. 

To play the queen from ace-queen and others, upon 
a low opening card led by your partner, is not proper 

199 



if dummy shows nothing. Your partner probably 
holds the king, and you are finessing against his hand. 
At trumps he might be leading a singleton. If you 
play the ace in such an event and return his lead, you 
offer him the only chance he may have to make good 
a small trump; but if you put up the queen the de- 
clarer will win with the king, and will probably lead 
trumps. Finessing against your partner's hand is one 
of the worst possible mistakes. Even if your finesse 
succeeds, it sometimes fools your partner on the loca- 
tion of your high card. A finesse which fails may even 
cause your partner to abandon a good suit because he 
thinks it is hopelessly against him. 

At no trumps you may hold over a good card for 
several rounds if dummy refuses to play the honor 
over which you stand. At trumps it rarely pays to 
hold up an honor merely on account of what dummy 
shows, as the danger of finally losing your honor 
through a ruff from the declarer is too great. 

FOURTH-HAND PLAY 

The pone's play at fourth hand is similar to that of 
eldest hand, playing a winning card, in case the trick 
would otherwise be lost, unless he can gain an advan- 
tage by holding up. 

Details : 

FIRST-HAND PLAY 

Study your partner's plays. If he has led an ace 
at no trumps and leads scientifically, he should have 

200 



at least seven cards of that suit including another 
honor, also re-entry. Try to detect what the other 
honor is. The ace lead is an urgent call to clear the 
way by playing your highest card, and should be 
heeded, unless dummy holds something Hke a singly 
guarded queen, while you have a similarly guarded 
king. 

If you have thrown your doubleton king upon an 
ace led when dimimy held the singleton lo, and the 
second lead was won by the declarer's queen, you have 
no more of your partner's suit, but you know that he 
holds the jack, and re-entry in some other suit. The 
first time you win a trick it is your duty to attempt to 
lead eldest hand's re-entry suit in preference to fool- 
ing with one of your own. His suit is now set up and 
good for at least 5 tricks, probably 6 tricks. Look for 
suits with aces and kings unlocated. It cannot well 
be a suit of which you can locate both top honors out- 
side your partner's hand. 

Never attempt to show a suit by leading anything 
from it before trying to put your partner in the lead 
with a set-up suit, imless you can lead one of two re- 
maining winning cards to show that you hold the 
other. If positive of the suit your partner wants, you 
had better lead both your winning cards to provide for 
the contingency of his having no more to lead back. 
Then lead the suit which he wants. 

Pone, as well as eldest hand, must be careful not to 
let the weak hand ruff, and must take out dimimy's 
re-entry before he can establish a dangerous suit. 
Unless positive that your partner can win your return 
lead at no trumps, you had better lead to remove 

201 



dummy's singleton ace of re-entry if he holds also a 
suit needing only one more lead to set it up. Of course, 
you merely waste time if the declarer still holds two 
cards in dummy's dangerous suit, or if you hold a stop 
to dumm^^'s suit, so well guarded that the declarer 
will use up dummy's re-entry before he can establish 
the suit. 

No-trump blocks frequently occur through forgetting 
that your partner's suit should be returned with the 
highest card which you hold of it, or through discard- 
ing low from his suit. The high-card return avoids 
blocking, it gives him a supporting lead, and shows him 
a missing high card. If you simply wish to save one 
or, better still, two cards of your partner's suit, to lead 
in case you secure re-entry before he does, almost in- 
variably your discard of medium cards and saving the 
low cards will serve his purpose best. Not infrequently 
it happens that pone and eldest hand each hold four 
of the opening suit. If that occurs when you can lead 
to advantage to dummy's weakness, you can play your 
lowest card on the third round, and so win the fourth 
round with your highest card, in order to gain the open- 
ing lead for your new suit. Instead of wanting to lead 
up to dummy's weakness after running out your long 
suit as above, the desirable thing may be a lead through 
dummy's strength. In this latter case you must be 
careful to unblock,, in order not to win the last trick 
of the long suit. 

Eldest hand discontinues holding tip a tenace if 
dummy possesses its intermediate card, but the reverse 
is true with pone — ^it is useless for him to hold up a 
tenace unless dummy holds its missing card. If eldest 

202 



hand has ace-queen of a suit and the king is not in the 
dummy, he reserves this tenace, hoping to catch the 
declarer's king; but if the dummy holds the king with 
even a single guard, it is useless to preserve the tenace, 
so he plays the ace whenever convenient. If pone 
holds ace-queen he reverses this process by playing 
the ace if the dummy does not show the king, but re- 
fusing to open that suit if dummy has the king. 

Unless hard pushed for something possible to open, 
do not lead up to dummy's tenace, whether you hold 
the intermediate card or not. Do not open up any 
suit in which you hold cards over dummy, let some one 
else open such a suit. Lead trumps, or lead a card up 
to dummy's ace of another suit if he has no weakness 
to which you can lead. 

Sometimes toward the end of a suit you may hold 
something like 10-8-4, while dummy holds 9-7, the 
other two hands are void of your suit, and both are 
presumably able to ruff. If the declarer would kindly 
lead the suit to you it would be preferable, but it is 
your lead and nothing desirable is apparent. If you 
lead the 4 of the suit named, your 10 still dominates, 
and the declarer, being unable to place the 8 and 10, 
is apt to ruff very low, so that your partner can win a 
cheap trick. In any event, the lead has not done any 
harm if your partner cannot outruft' the declarer. 

Either if you cannot or if you realize that it is useless 
to lead back your partner's suit at a time when you hold 
tenaces in both of the remaining plain suits, you can 
lead from two or three small trumps through the de- 
clarer's strength, as a sign that eldest hand can open 
either of the yet unplayed suits. Instead of tenaces you 

203 



may hold the king and small cards of a suit where dimimy 
holds a tenace, and in the other suit a king and small 
ones with the ace unplaced. If eldest hand holds the 
ace to one of the plain suits, upon receipt of such a 
signal he should lead out his ace followed by a small 
card. It is possible that your signal may mean that 
you hold an ace of one plain suit and have no cards 
of the other and seek a ruff. This last use of the signal 
is unusual, and will cause the declarer to lead trumps, 
unless your partner happens to hold high cards in your 
void suit. 

SECOND-HAND PLAY 

Aside from a desire to let one opponent run out of a 
suit before you win with an ace, there arise cases where 
you gain an additional trick if the short hand plays 
before you. 

Take a case like this: 

Dummy holds only two small cards of the suit, you 
come next with ace-io-9-X, the declarer has king- 
queen-jack-8-X-X, and your partner holds a small 
singleton. Dummy leads, and you cover with your 
lowest card, the declarer winning with the jack. 
Whether the lead comes through again, or whether the 
declarer leads directly from his own hand, you will 
win two tricks. Had you played the ace to the first 
trick the declarer would have won the remaining five 
tricks. It is not only the additional trick that counts, 
but there is also the extra re-entry card which may en- 
able you to establish a suit. 

Another reason for holding back a winning card is 
to see your partner's first discard, to know what to 

204 



lead to him in case you have none of his opening suit 
or if it appears hopeless to lead it. This is a most ex- 
cellent reason, of which few players ever appear to 
think. 

Either the declarer wants a majority of cards in a 
suit before he attempts to clear it or else he holds 
several of its honors. Remembering this will some- 
times help you decide what to play when he leads 
from a short or from a long low suit in dummy. A 
lead from a singleton or doubleton in dummy would 
place a probable minimum on the suit held by the 
declarer, as 5 or 6 cards with 2 honors or 4 cards with 
3 honors. 

Holding king-queen-X, on a singleton jack led from 
dtmimy it is puzzling to know what to do. If the de- 
clarer dares to finesse the jack, you must win one trick 
if you play low, and if he puts on the ace because he 
has a very long suit you will win two tricks. With a 
small lead from dimimy's doubleton it is useless to 
cover the first lead from king-queen-X. You are sure 
of a trick anyhow, and it is possible that 2 tricks may 
be won. 

Cover even a low-card lead if you hold a fourchette 
over it which is lower than your best card. 

In discarding on opponents' leads at no trumps al- 
ways retain one card of your partner's suit, two if 
possible, so as to return his lead twice, except when 
you must unguard an honor in another suit to thus 
help him. Your duty lies first to your hand, and only 
second to his. Where only a single card can be re- 
tained a low card is more apt to meet his needs than 
a high one. 

205 



THIRD -HAND PLAY 

Suppose that your partner leads a low card at no 
trumps, dummy shows only 3 small cards of the suit, 
and you hold king-jack-X. Your partner self- 
evidently has not 3 honors in the suit, unless he holds 
less than 7 to ace-queen-io, or he would have led one 
of them, so it is practically certain that the declarer 
has an honor, possibly two of them, and holds less than 
4 of the suit. You should play your king, which can 
only lose to the ace, and if you win you should lead 
back the jack. If instead of doing this you play the 
jack on the first round, you may lose to a twice- 
guarded queen, which could never have won a trick 
had you not finessed against your partner. The loss of 
this one trick may lose you the rubber, while saving it 
and having a successful contract the next hand might 
have won the rubber for you. If declarer holds the 
ace as an only honor, the king is no worse to play than 
the jack. With the 10 or queen it is better. If the 
declarer holds two honors it will make no difference, if 
the two are ace and queen, as you must lose two tricks 
whether you play jack or king. If declarer holds 
ace-io-X or queen- lo-X it does not matter, since 
you and he will each win one trick. As the king can 
never be the poorer card to play, and in certain instances 
is the better card to play, a finesse of the second best 
cannot be justified. So it is in all similar cases where 
dummy shows no strength in the suit led — the pone 
must play his highest card at third hand on his part- 
ner's opening low card. 

If the same card is led at no trumps when pone holds 
206 



king-jack-X, and an honor is in dummy, what pone 
should do depends upon dummy's honor and its guards. 
Suppose that dummy has a doubly guarded honor. 
If it is the queen, pone must hold his king and play the 
jack. As already explained, this requires the ace to 
beat it, and consequently momentarily is the equal of 
the king in power. If the held-up honor is the ace or 
lo, pone must play his king and retiim his jack. Of 
course, the jack will lose to the ace, but it will clear the 
suit, and that is what the ** defenders ".ought to do — 
clear their suit before the declarer's attacks have robbed 
them of their re-entry cards. 

At no trumps, if a small card is led and you hold 
king- 1 0-3, if dummy plays 7 from queen-8-7, you will 
cover with the 10. If the declarer has either a guarded 
jack or the ace it will be impossible to prevent his 
winning with one hand or the other. By holding the 
king you are preventing the queen winning, anyway; 
but by playing the king the queen must win, and if 
the declarer holds the ace you will lose two tricks 
instead of one. If dummy shows one more card to the 
queen than you hold to the king, you should play the 
king on the first round and return the 10. If dummy 
holds Q-X-X-X, and the lead is a card which dummy 
cannot beat without playing the queen, and which you 
need not raise, you can hold the king, the second and 
third round playing respectively the 10 and king, so 
that ultimately the queen must drop to the ace if your 
partner has it. 

Suppose that your partner leads 8, from ace-jack- 
9-8-4, dummy shows queen-6-5-2, you hold king- 10- 7. 
By applying your rule of eleven you see that if the 

207 



8 is a fourth-best card the declarer has nothing to 
beat it, and if it is merely a strengthening lead from 
nothing that it will be folly to play the king, so you 
"duck " by playing the 7. If the 9 follows and dummy 
refuses to play the queen, you overplay with the 10 
and return the king. You are now unable to continue 
the suit, but if eldest hand can re-enter later on he can 
win 2 more tricks in his suit. If you play the king 
on the first round and return the 10 the queen can 
finally win a trick. 

Finesse boldly against strength in dummy, but never 
against hidden strength. Return your partner's lead 
unless you have a better suit. Apply the rule of eleven 
to leads of cards lower than a 9. Be sure you fully 
understand the principles of unblocking, echoing, over- 
play, and underplay. 

A variation of one in denomination of the card led 
may change your style of play. Suppose that in both 
instances you hold ace-8-3, and that dummy has 
king-5-2. In the first case the 7 is led. By applying 
the rule of eleven you see this must mean that de- 
clarer holds one card higher than the 7, and conse- 
quently higher than your 8. It may be queen, jack, 
or 10. It cannot be the 9, since eldest hand would 
lead an honor from three. In the second case the 6 
is led. This adds to the cards which the declarer may 
hold, the 9 and 7, and you know that he has two of 
that list. In both cases it is evident that a guarded 
queen in the declarer's hand must win, regardless of 
what you do, because the declarer will win the first 
trick if you refuse to play the ace; but the king will 
eventually lose to the ace. If you do play the ace the 

208 



king is bound to win a trick, but the ace may catch 
the unguarded queen. As the chances are greater for 
declarer to hold 2 or 3 of the suit in the first case than 
they are that he holds only one of the suit, the 
chances of his making two tricks if you play the ace 
are greater than that you will catch an unguarded 
queen. It is therefore better to give him one trick in 
his own hand and be certain that it will end there than 
it is to give him a certain trick in dummy and a pos- 
sible one in his own hand. 

In the second case the declarer holds two cards bet- 
ter than the one led ; unless one of them is the guarded 
queen he cannot win a trick out of his own hand if you 
play the ace and return the 8. It will consequently 
be better to give him a certain trick with the king than 
to allow him to win perhaps an extra trick which you 
can surely prevent, unless he has the queen, by leading 
through his hand. 

A list to cover even the commonest cases arising of 
when to finesse on third-hand play as pone, by reason 
of what dummy shows and the card led, is too com- 
plex to keep in mind. The only way is to have the 
general principles governing such cases clearly in mind 
and to apply them as the lay of the cards demands. 
As your partner usually leads from either a 4 or 5 card 
suit, you must allow that the declarer has what your 
hand and dummy's jointly do not show of the remain- 
ing 8 or 9 cards of the suit. 

If there is but one way to win all the tricks in a suit, 
you must assume that those conditions exist and play 
accordingly. If queen-X-X appears in dummy when 
you hold ace-jack-X, assume that the jack will win 

209 



if finessed, then lead the ace and return the small 
card for partner's king to win the third trick. Do not 
play the ace to the first round to catch the hypotheti- 
cal unguarded king. If the king is there it is probably 
guarded, and two tricks will be lost. Even if you 
catch the unguarded king you will lose just as much 
by the queen winning a trick as if you had allowed the 
king to win. 

Holding only ace-queen of the suit led, if king remains 
in dummy, play the queen first to prevent dummy 
winning over it, then lead back the ace, whether the 
king is guarded or not. It is useless to hold a singleton 
ace over a doubleton king. The declarer knows that 
if eldest hand originally holds ace-jack- lo he will not 
open with a low card, but will lead the jack. Conse- 
quently, the declarer knows that you must have the 
ace, and are holding it up to wait for another lead 
through dtimmy, and so will again refuse to play the 
king. By holding on to your ace it costs your partner 
3 re-entry cards to clear the suit; by leading it back 
you enable him to clear in 2 re-entries. Moreover, 
your partner may think that the declarer has the ace, 
and so never give you an opportunity to play it, except 
at your own expense of a re-entr}^ card. If you hold 
only ace-queen and king does not show in dummy, 
always play the ace first and lead back the queen. If 
declarer holds the king, you may possibly catch it un- 
guarded, but the main reason is to show your partner 
both ace and queen. If you play the queen and the 
declarer captures it with the king on the first round, 
eldest hand thinks that he also holds the ace, and may 
stop the suit. In any event, the suit will be blocked 

210 



twice, once by the declarer's king and once by your 
ace, thus costing two re-entry cards, whereas the other 
way it costs only a single re-entry card to clear it, pro- 
vided your partner holds the other two honors, jack 
and lo. 

For similar reasons, when dummy shows nothing 
necessitating the hold-up of an honor, play ace to first 
trick and lead back queen, even if you hold ace-queen- 
X or ace-queen-X-X. 

If you hold any combination of cards, say king- 
jack- lo-X, and dummy shows queen-X or 9-X-X 
or anything else which, added to your own cards, proves 
by the rule of eleven that the lead is not a fourth-best 
card, but is a strengthening lead (as 8 from 8-7-X-X, 
for example), the suit is your own, and you must play 
it according to your own requirements. This is not 
finessing against your partner, for he has avowed that 
he holds nothing. 

Third-hand play for pone is less complex at trumps 
than at no trumps. On account of the liability of a 
ruff it very rarely pays to hold up a card because of 
what dummy may show. A card lower than your best 
can always be played when it is apparent from dummy's 
hand that it will be as efficacious as the best you hold 
in making declarer play high or in winning a trick. 
If your partner leads a very low plain card, it is presum- 
ably either a singleton or else he has one of the high 
honors. If dummy shows queen-X-X and does not 
play the queen, the declarer probably is short-suited 
or holds an honor. If you hold ace-jack only, the 
liability of his being short is very slight — he perhaps 
holds the guarded 10. In this case if you finesse the 
15 211 



jack it will win. If the lead is a singleton the ace will 
eventually win, and you stand a chance to make good 
a card which otherwise will be lost. If the jack wins, 
you lead back the ace, and your partner's king will later 
take care of dummy's queen. Leading away from a 
king is a bad blind opening, of course, but sometimes 
you are forced to do so. It is perfectly sound after 
dummy's cards are boarded and fail to show the ace. 
You will frequently find your partner forced to blindly 
open a suit like four to a queen. His lead of an inter- 
mediate card like a 7 or 8, instead of a very low card, 
is to prevent you from leading the suit back to dummy's 
king or ace, under the impression that a singleton has 
been led, in case you win the first trick. 

A low-card opening lead at trumps calls for your 
best card, except in a very unusual case, as your part- 
ner has something in his hand to which he wants a 
return lead. 

After trumps are exhausted the play of any suit is 
precisely as at no trumps. 

On highest of a weak suit led your play must be 
governed by what you and dummy have. Your part- 
ner is now leading your suit, not his own, and you are 
at liberty to play in whatever manner best meets your 
own needs. 

On a jack lead overplay with the ace unless both 
king and queen remain in dummy. On a queen lead 
overplay with ace unless king remains in dummy. 

Echo at trumps on a king lead if you hold ace or 
queen, or if you have only two of the suit, as explained 
under the ''Third-round Call." 

At no trumps carefully follow out the instructions 



given under "Unblocking," so as not to stand in your 
partner's way. 

Aside from the obligation not to block your partner 
is the desirability to overplay or underplay on your 
partner's leads from a strong suit all high cards in his 
suit, which cannot in any way assist him. It is done 
to show him where they lie and encourage him to con- 
tinue the suit. This is only done when your suit is 
the weaker. 

On an ace lead, unless it is needed to catch a gxiarded 
card in dummy's hand, throw your king or other honor, 
even if not possible to block. On a king lead overplay 
with the ace unless the doubly guarded jack or lo 
appears in dummy. 

On the queen lead overplay with the ace or king unless 
a card shows in dummy, which self -evidently the re- 
maining card in your partner's hand cannot catch, 
but which yours can take. His remaining honors on 
a queen lead are liable to be ace-jack, jack-io, or 
jack-g. 

On the jack lead from ace-king-jack, overplay with 
your queen unless the trebly guarded lo shows in 
dummy. If the jack wins the first trick, in the latter 
case, your partner will credit you with holding the 
queen, and will let you win the second trick. Even if 
you block him with your short suit it will be better 
than being blocked by dummy later on, for you will 
try to lead to your partner's re-entry, while the de- 
clarer will do his best to avoid doing so. Similarly, 
on the jack lead from ace-jack-io throw your king or 
queen, unless needed to keep dummy out. 

Underplaying with any useless honor on an ace or 
213 



king lead, or with the lo on the queen lead, is less com- 
monly observed than overplaying by even good play- 
ers, but in reality this does much to smooth a partner's 
path. 

On the lead of a high-winning card at trumps, in 
cases not coming under the third-round call, play as 
low as possible if you do not want the suit continued, 
as 3 from 10-8-3. If you do want the suit continued, 
play high, if you consistently can, so that eldest hand 
can see that either you can ruff or hold the next 
winning card, as 9 from king-9-2 when partner leads 
the ace. 



DECLARER 

Chief Essentials: 

The declarer can read each bid as readily as an 
opponent can. Signals and discards must be noted 
by him, to locate strength and weakness in each stiit. 
Unblocking, finessing, false - carding, hesitation, or 
unnatural readiness in playing, looks of satisfaction or 
of disappointment, are all indicative of what an ad- 
versary holds. 

Always apply the rule of eleven to fourth-best leads 
at no trumps. 

The rules for the guidance of eldest hand's and 
pone's play also apply to that of the declarer, with 
such modifications as his perfect knowledge of both 
his hands permits. 

To play well as declarer you must first know how to 
play in the side positions, so that proper deductions can 
be drawn from what each adversary does. 

After dummy's cards have been boarded, give a few 
moments' concentrated thought to the possibilities dis- 
closed by the joint cards of your two hands. Note 
established and establishable suits, re-entry cards, or 
where re-entry must be provided. Think over the op- 

215 



posing bids. Determine which hand shall lead each 
strong suit and where chances to finesse exist. If 
playing at trumps, decide on your style of game. Shall 
trumps be led at once, and after that shall a suit be 
set up, or shall a cross-rufE be employed? Perhaps it 
will pay better to utilize tnmips in ruffing than to use 
them in exhausting adversaries' hands. What tricks 
must be lost with each game variation in sight ? What 
tricks can you surely win? Can you make a slam, or 
must you stop at game, or will it be a hard fight to win 
your contract? 

Do not let a chattering partner hurry you by asking, 
*'Do you want dummy to play the 3 or the queen?" 
This pause after dimmiy's cards are tabled is the one 
legitimate time for thought, and is so recognized by 
every experienced player. It is also the time for the 
side players to consider their own projects. 

The way a declarer handles his trumps is usually a 
good index of his ability as a player. 

Three principal courses are open to the declarer at 
trumps : 

1 . Exhaust adverse trumps and bring in a long suit. 

2. Trump adversaries' long suits and use his own long suits 
to force the defenders. 

3. Establish a cross-ruff. 

It is generally wise to lead trumps, unless you have 
been doubled on a small contract. In the latter case 
it is best to do so if your trump strength equals the 
doubler's, provided you can lead through his strength 
and finesse deeply against his partner. 

Holding an estabhshed suit, you should exhaust 
216 



trumps before opening the established suit, unless ad- 
verse trump strength is too great for you. In the 
latter case you can lead the established suit times 
enough to reduce adversaries' trumps to a point where 
you can exhaust the rest by trump leads, after which 
you can resume leading the established suit. 

When dummy has an established suit and is able 
to ruff adversaries' long suits with a few low trumps, 
and you hold very little aside from four trump honors, 
with several low cards of dimmiy's suit, it is not im- 
probable that if you lead trumps an adverse long 
trump will ruff dummy's long suit and permit your 
adversaries to lead their long suits unchecked. The 
best course may then be to lead dummy's long suit 
and let them ruff it, utilizing his two or three small 
trumps to ruff their long suits. This will reduce ad- 
verse trump strength to a point where you hold the 
long trump. You then lead trumps, and afterward 
allow dummy to continue with his long suit. The same 
plan may be workable if you have a few very high 
trump cards and a set-up suit, "if dummy can ruff a 
long established suit of the side players. 

With plenty of trumps exhaust those opposed to 
you before trying to set up a suit. If trumps are 
rather scarce, try to set up the suit before leading 
trtimps. A force or two will reduce adverse trump 
strength to a point where you can handle it. 

Having 4 trumps in your hand, with 3 trumps in 
dummy's, their denominations often determine whether 
or not they shall be led. Four top honors is a power- 
ful reason for leading trumps, unless you face estabHshed 
suits in adversaries' hands. Trumps like K-J-io-X, 

217 



A-Q-J-X, Q-J-io-X, A-J-io-X, A-Q-io-X in one 
hand and three small trumps in the other hand give 
good grounds to consider whether some other method 
will not win more tricks than leading out trumps. 

An excellent reason for not leading trumps occurs 
when the weak hand can ruff a suit of which the strong 
hand holds only small cards. Better still is the op- 
portunity to ruff with the weak hand and to discard 
from a low suit held by the strong hand. 

With abundant trumps and a strong side suit lead 
trumps at once, even if the weak hand can ruff some- 
thing else. 

The only excuse for unnecessarily ruffing from the 
strong hand is either a superabundance of trumps or 
an established cross-ruff. You can calculate upon spar- 
ing one trump for ruffing, without leaving the long 
trump in your adversaries' hands, if you hold 4 tnmips 
in each hand you play, or five in one hand and two in 
the other, or with six in one hand and none in the other. 
With fewer trumps than these a force is better than a 
ruff. 

Even if short of trumps it is usually better to ruff 
than to let a long suit run unchecked. Merely wait 
until you have made re-entry difficult because one ad- 
versary has no more of the other's long suit. 

At no trumps a good general rule for the declarer 
is to lose tricks which must surely be lost early, while 
he has good guards about his suits. 

If the declarer has guards in all suits he can try to 
establish one or more of them before he plays out an 
estabHshed suit. When it will be difficult to estabHsh 
a suit, if he holds one already established he can lead 

218 



that one first, to benefit by his adversaries' discards. 
The object in being able to lead out two established 
stiits is utterly to crush adverse strength in the re- 
maining suits. 

Details : 

The expert enjoys and the novice most dreads 
playing the joint hands of declarer and dummy. 
Knowing precisely the resources and weak points on 
his side, he can direct his game with an assurance 
which is impossible for his adversaries. His offensive 
tactics of first and third hands do not clash, while the 
defensive play of second or of fourth hand is not upset 
by a partner misunderstanding his play. 

To offset his adversaries' single advantage, of being 
able to lead through the strength of his exposed hand 
and up to its weakness, he can throw the lead from one 
hand to the other, so that he can lead from the weaker 
hand to the stronger on every suit as long as re-entry 
lasts. 

The principal object in leading trumps is to prevent 
ruffs. Winning tricks over smaller trumps is a sec- 
ondary matter. 

If you have 4 trumps and dummy has 3, you have 
only I in 3 chances to hold a long trump. If you have 
only 4 trumps and dummy holds less than 3 , it is quite 
useless to lead trumps. 

Holding 8 trumps, four in each hand, 68 in 89 times 
you can depend upon neither adversary holding over 3 
trumps. 

219 



Holding 6 trumps, 5 in one hand and i in the other, 
5 in 8 times you will find the adversaries' trumps di- 
vided 4 in one hand and 3 in the other. With 5 trumps 
in one hand and none in the other you have only i in 3 
chances to hold a long trump. 

With 6 tnrnips in one hand and none in the other 
you can calculate upon having 2 long trumps 7 in 11 
times. 

It is good policy to draw two trumps from opponents 
to your one, when both of them have trumps and your 
partner has none. It is bad to reverse the process and 
waste two trumps to draw one, unless you are very 
strong in trumps. Rarely waste two trumps to draw 
the remaining winning trump. Try to force it and to 
make your remaining trumps separately by ruffing. 
If you have a good suit to lead, you can utilize the 
trump in one hand to ruff a weak suit; then if you 
have re-entry, lead the other trump to draw out the 
winning trump from your adversary. 

It is better to make a helpful discard than to over- 
trump, when doing so puts a winning trump in your 
adversaries' hands. 

When you and an adversary have an equal number 
of trumps left you can lead them if they are winning 
cards and if you have an established stdt. Otherwise 
your best plan is to force him to ruff, so as to give you 
the long tnunp. 

When left with several winning tnmips or winning 
cards of any suit and one losing card of a plain suit, 
lead out all the winning cards first. Many times your 
adversaries will discard so that your last card will also 
win. I have frequently induced an adversary to throw 

220 



away his ace of a suit in which I held "the 13th card" 
by throwing away dummy's king of that suit as if I 
intended finally to lead another suit. 

At tnrnips the leader of a king can often be scared 
away from leading more of your long low suit by throw- 
ing under his king your highest card, as if you could 
ruff it on the next round. Expert players are not very 
apt to be caught by such tricks, neither are players of 
very small experience, but similar strategy can be em- 
ployed against the great majority of ordinary players 
with fair success. 

Remember not to block the run of your trump suit, 
ruffing or leading high enough to avoid this. A tem- 
porary block may give an adversary a chance to ruff 
with a losing trump. 

Almost any declarer can play a winning game at no 
trumps with strong cards and both hands guarded in all 
four suits. Even fair players are apt to miss a trick or 
two with such hands, however, because they appear so 
simple. They will use high cards in adversaries' suits 
which should be employed only for re-entry and to 
stop the run of opposing suits to win tricks early in 
the game. Or they will run out a moderately long suit 
and leave adversaries a long card or two, when they 
might just as well have established and run out a 
longer suit to force discards. These would be full of 
information, as well as weakening to opposing hands. 
Skill in playing at no trumps consists to a great extent 
of winning tricks with small cards of a long suit and of 
forcing adversaries either to unguard high cards in 
suits where the strength is divided or to discard from 
their strong suits. This preventing adversaries bring- 

221 



ing in their long suits before discards have weakened 
them is very important ; so, also, is refusing to play a 
commanding card of their long suit until one of their 
hands can no longer lead that suit. This gives one 
hand against which finesses can be directed without fear 
that an established long suit will be led against you. 

The bids assist greatly in locating adverse strength 
and in determining its general character. 

Stops to the run of your own suit must be removed, 
as also must re-entry cards of adversaries, while un- 
blocking and insuring re-entry in the weak hand must 
be most carefully observed. At trumps, reserving a 
trump in the weak hand often provides the best pos- 
sible (perhaps only possible) re-entry card; so at no 
trumps a higher card of your established suit retained 
in the weak hand and a lower one in the strong hand 
may prove your best means of re-entry, after all op- 
posing cards of that suit have been played. This fea- 
ture is always worthy of consideration, instead of blind- 
ly playing out the very last cards of a suit. 

In reviewing the joint cards of dummy and himself 
the declarer will ordinarily select as the suit for his 
no-trump attack the one containing the greatest num- 
ber of cards. Of two suits equal in other respects 
select the one in which dummy shows the greatest 
strength, since the adversaries will more zealously 
protect their high cards in this suit than they will the 
one in which you hold concealed strength. In defend- 
ing themselves from the attack of dummy's suit they 
are apt to unguard high cards in your concealed suit 
and thus give you a chance readily to establish it after 
the first suit has been exhausted. 

222 



Other things being equal, it is self-evident that a 
total of 8 cards divided equally between your hand 
and dummy's is less effective than the same cards di- 
vided 5 and 3, or 6 and 2, because 5 or 6 leads of a suit 
will necessitate the adversaries sacrificing more through 
discards than 4 leads will. Moreover, a total of 7 
cards, divided 6 and i between your two hands, is 
better than 8 (containing the same honors), divided 
evenly, or in the ratio of 5 to 3, between dummy and 
declarer. 

It is often better to try to establish an inferior suit 
than to continue with the first one tried when great 
strength in that suit is concentrated in the hand over 
you. 

Second and fourth hand plays for the declarer are 
much simpler than for the other two players. There 
is no unnecessary sacrifice of two high cards on a single 
trick, such as frequently occurs with the defenders. 
Where, for example, eldest hand will play the queen 
from three on the 10 led by the declarer, because 
dimimy shows nothing, and the pone wins with his 
singleton ace. 

Playing two hands gives the declarer a chance to 
save a high card in his weak hand for re-entry when 
he can as cheaply win from his own hand. With 
Q-X-X in dummy and A-J-X-X in your own hand 
do not try to win with the queen; use either jack or 
ace. 

Do not risk a high card at second hand, unless you 
are strong in the suit, if you are liable to be called upon 
to overplay at fourth hand. At no trumps you must 
play the king from two at second hand if fourth hand 

223 



has nothing; but this comes under the general heading 
of making a poorly guarded honor good when possible. 
Moreover, you are not "liable to be called upon to over- 
play at fourth hand." With J-X-X-X in dummy do 
not play jack on lo led when you hold K-X-X in your 
own hand. If the lo surely came from A-Q-io it 
would be all right to do so, but it would be a miserable 
opening with less than 7 in suit, and more probably it 
comes from the top of a suit, so the pone probably 
has both ace and queen. If he plays the ace you have 
saved your jack and can later stop his queen. If he 
plays the queen you can win the trick with the king, 
with the comfortable feeling that unless the lead was 
from a short suit the pone holds only the ace, and 
must again block the suit if it is led. 

If you can wm two tricks in an adversary's suit, it is 
ordinarily better to win the second and third, or the 
first and third, rather than the first two tricks. If it 
is apparent that the leader's partner will have none of 
the suit to lead back after the second round, it will 
be best to win the first and second rounds, and chance 
that suit being led again. Unless declarer and dummy 
jointly hold seven you cannot be certain of that fact. 
If you hold A-Q-X and dummy holds less than 4 
small cards, it will be wise to win the first trick with 
the queen from pone on a lead from your left, then to 
hold the ace until the third round. You cannot let 
the first trick go to pone (unless he wins with the king) 
and permit him to lead through your hand up to eldest 
hand's king. Even if eldest hand will win the first 
trick it is somewhat dangerous to let him do so if you 
have a weak suit, because he might change to that suit 

224 



and wait for a lead to come through your tenace. If 
instead of A-Q-X you should hold A-K-X, it would 
be best to pass the first trick, with less than 7 of the 
suit between you and dummy. 

Holding up a commanding card of an adversary's 
suit until one player can no longer lead that suit gives 
you only one instead of two hands to fear. A general 
rule is that it will pay to hold up twice if it pays to 
hold up the first round. If an adversary holds up an 
ace too long the declarer may avoid leading that suit, 
but the declarer can usually hold up a winning card 
as long as he chooses. Holding up a winning card in 
each hand, care must be taken finally to play them in a 
way to bring your own lead from the desired direction. 

With ace of an adversary's strong suit in one hand 
and Idng in the other, like A-X-X and K-X-X, after 
the first round there will remain against you only 5 of 
that suit. If you pass the first round and win the 
second and third rounds, the suit will probably never 
be heard from again, so that it often pays to hold up 
two stops to a strong suit instead of one. 

Weakly guarded honors, like Q-X-X, J-X-X-X, 
should be allowed to make when they can. 

If a change of suit is feared, to prevent right-hand 
adversary leading through a suit not fully protected, 
it sometimes pays to outplay him if you are willing 
that your left-hand adversary should win and lead up 
to your strong hand. 

Make your discards as enigmatical as possible. 
Decide where the next attack is to come, and hide ex- 
treme weakness in a suit by discarding from a stronger 
one. Do not discard from the same suit in both hands 

225 



unless that suit is so strong that you can well spare 
the cards. When one hand has a suit well guarded, 
that suit can be discarded from the other hand. In 
this way you can ordinarily guard one suit in each 
hand by allowing one hand to discard from the suit 
the other guards. With hearts being led after your 
side has no more, when 

Clubs Diamonds Spades 
declarer has left A-Q-X A-K-X X-X-X-X 

and dummy has left X-X-X J-X-X-X K-Q-X 

the declarer can discard spades while dummy discards 
clubs. 

With two entire suits against you, the lead must not 
be lost until you have won all you can. With only a 
single suit against you, an attempt must be made to 
establish your best suit. Holding a second stop to the 
opening suit entitles you to take chances not otherwise 
warranted. 

A suit with an adverse ace is much better to open 
than one having both king and queen against you. 
The ace is almost certain to win sometime, but by 
postponing opening the last-named suit it is pos- 
sible that discards may cause both king and queen 
to fall together, or one of them to fall to your 
ace. 

Bad suits for the declarer to open, unless they are 
very long, are those having a single honor in each hand. 
If they are ace and king they should be saved for 
valuable re-entry; otherwise than ace and king the 
suits are too weak to open. King or queen with small 

226 



supporting cards in one hand, and jack or lo with 
smaller ones in the other hand, are extremely bad suits 
to open. 

Long suits in one hand from which ace, king, or 
queen would naturally be led on the blind lead, with 
some support in the other hand, are always admirable 
suits to open at no trumps. The best suit, of course, 
is a long, fully established suit which insures helpful 
discards. 

Most games are won through two things: having 
the cards, and not missing obvious things. Only at 
rare intervals does a brilliant coup win a game which 
otherwise would be lost. Lots of games are lost, on 
the other hand, by undue risks taken in the attempt 
to pull off a smart play, and still more are lost by 
failure to follow the fall of the cards. 

If a finesse is attempted on the first round of an un- 
hid suit which you open, it has even chances of success; 
but if deferred until the second round its chances aver- 
age better, because of information given by the cards 
played on the first round; singleton stops are also 
eliminated. A little plain common sense will also help 
to direct a finesse properly. If eldest hand has shown 
considerable strength in his stiit and the declarer finds 
that a finesse must be chanced in one or two other 
suits, the law of averages indicates that the pone is 
more apt to hold the missing strength in those suits 
than eldest hand. Accordingly, a finesse through the 
pone should be tried. 

Finessing is one of the most obvious methods of 
winning extra tricks and of bringing out missing 
strength. A common trait of most players is to let 
16 227 



small cards of a sequence slip past their top card; but 
few can resist covering the card immediately below the 
one they hold. If you have a sequence Q-J-10-9 and 
the player on your left holds the guarded king, he will 
probably let the 9 or 10 slip past him and win tricks. 
He may pass the jack, but unless he is a seasoned 
player he will be almost certain to cover the queen, 
regardless of the utility of such a play. 

Play a high card to dislodge a high obstructing card, 
and play a low one if you want it to slip past a guard. 

There are times to risk much on a finesse and times 
to prefer a certain small loss to risking a finesse at all. 
Always consider what you have to gain by a successful 
finesse, and the possible extent of your loss if the 
finesse fails. 

If you intend leading trumps, always do so before 
risking a finesse in a plain suit. If a finesse goes 
wrong it may mean a dangerous lead from the winner, 
a ruff by his partner, or, perhaps, even a cross-ruff may 
be started. 

Risk a finesse to win the game if its miscarriage can- 
not "set" you. As winning the game means so much 
more than a lower score, it is usually best to risk being 
set one undoubled trick if a successful finesse will win 
the game. If possible to win the contract by refusing 
all finesses, it is better to accept that than to risk two 
finesses, which will win the game if both are suc- 
cessful, but which will lose the contract if either 
fails. 

With other things equal, direct finesses against the 
stronger adversary, but do not take a finesse on the side 
from which a disadvantageous lead can come through 

228 



you if you lose. Do not risk losing to the adversary 
holding a suit which you are not prepared to stop. 

Where the chances seem to be even whether to 
finesse or to play high for the " drop " of an obstructing 
card some players always finesse, others always go for 
the drop. Let us take two examples to illustrate what 
is meant: 

1. You and dummy jointly hold all except the king 
and 7 of a suit at no trumps. Dimimy leads up to 
your ace and queen, pone plays the 7. Shall you 
finesse the queen on the chance that pone still holds 
the king, or shall 3^ou play the ace on the chance that 
eldest hand has it ? We will assume that dtmimy won 
the first trick (the principle involved will be the same, 
regardless of the number of cards played) , consequently 
pone holds 1 1 cards which you have not yet seen, while 
eldest hand holds 12 such cards. Speaking from a 
purely mathematical standpoint, there are accordingly 
12 chances that eldest hand has the king to 11 chances 
that pone has it, and the correct card to play is the 
ace. This is also true from the tendency cards of a 
suit have to fall oftener in rotation to the players than 
to be perfectly shuffled. 

2. You and dummy in this case lack only king, 7, 
and 3 of having a complete suit at no trumps. Here 
let us suppose first that pone plays the 3 on dummy's 
lead. It is evident that he may have no more, or he 
may have both other missing cards, or he may have, 
either one of them left alone. In the latter case, from 
every practical an(i purely theoretical standpoint, the 
chances are precisely equal for the remaining card to 
be the king or the 7 ; in that case it is a matter of pure 

229 



luck whether the queen or the ace had better be played. 
As eldest hand has one more card left in his hand than 
pone, the chances that the former holds both missing 
cards are consequently slightly greater than that pone 
holds them both. This problem has thus become the 
ordinary one of taking any finesse ; whether you shall 
play the ace or the queen must depend, as any other 
ordinary finesse does, upon the remainder of your 
hand. 

Let us now suppose that pone denies having the 3 by 
playing the 7 on dummy's lead. It is possible that he 
is false-carding, but the play must be regarded as show- 
ing either that he holds the king alone or that eldest 
hand holds both king and 3. If eldest hand holds the 
3, then the chances are exactly even whether he or 
pone holds the king. These chances are thus better 
than ordinary for a finesse ; you are assured in advance 
(barring false carding) that it will be impossible to 
catch the king by playing the ace, while you stand even 
chances of catching the king on your next lead by 
fineSvSing now. Your play is thus clearly to try the 
fineSvSe. 

Let us go one step further and take a case where 
dummy has led at no trumps with these four cards 
missing from your suit, K-7-3-2. Shall you finesse 
your queen or shall you play the ace ? Evidently, from 
what has already been stated, if pone plays the 2 the 
case is one to be decided as you would any question of 
finesse. If he plays the 3 the same thing is true, as 
he may have now one or two more. If he plays the 
7, however, your best chance is to take the finesse, 
which will surely win over the 3 and 2 whfch you admit 

230 



that eldest hand has, and gives you the only possible 
chance of catching the king by next leading the ace. 
Moreover, with one less card in his hand than pone 
which can be the king, eldest hand now stands fewer 
chances than pone of holding the king. 

This gives a most excellent general rule for finessing 
when you require better than ordinary chances of 
success to risk it : If the second player to a trick plays 
the third lowest missing card of that .suit (unless it 
is high enough to cover the card led) , the finesse stands 
better than ordinary chances of success. 

The general principles illustrated above will enable 
any one to determine whether a finesse in any given 
case stands average chances of winning, or whether the 
drop of an obstructing card should be expected if the 
high card is played. First place as many cards as 
possible (of every description) in the hands of pone and 
eldest hand. If the latter has opened with an honor 
or a fourth-best card, you can place most of the cards 
in his opening suit. If either has discarded on. a lead 
or has trumped, you can place all the cards of that suit, 
and so on. Count the unplaced cards in each oppos- 
ing hand. If fourth player has one more unplaced card 
than the second player, you have the usual odds 
against the success of a finesse. If fourth player has 
the same number of unplaced cards as second player 
you have better odds than usual in favor of the success 
of your finesse. 

Without special reasons for other play, the following 
frequently recurring combinations should be played 
as given: 

231 



Holding 


With these 




Unless second hand 


in 


in the 


Lead 


outplays the card 


one hand 


other hand 




given below play 


x-x-x 


A-Q-io 


X 


lO 


J-io-X 


A-Q-X 


J 


X 


X-X-X 


A-Q-X 


X 


Q 


A-X-X 


Q-X-X 


X 


Q 


K-X-X 


A-J-X 


X 


J 


X-X-X 


A-J-X 


X 


J 


lo-X 


A-J-X-X 


lO 


X 


A-J-X 


lo-X 


X 


10 


Q-X-X 


A-J-X-X 


X 


J 


[In order to 


save the queen for re-entry. If that is un- 


necessary the queen can be led.] 






A-io-X-X 


K-J-X-X 


(X 


K 

°'" A 


[Then reverse the process and lead 


a low card back to 


the other top card.] 






A-X-X 


Q-J-i(^X 


X 


lO 


[If re-entry is 


1 scarce. Otherwise can 


lead up to A.] 


Q-J-x 


A-X-X-X 


Q 


X 


A-X-X-X 


j-x-x 


X 


J 


X-X-X 


A-X-X-X-X 


X 


X 


[Repeat this; 


on third round play ace 


, and you may hope 


to win 3 tricks 


in the suit.] 






K-X-X-X 


J-X-X 


X 


J 


X-X-X 


K-Q-X 


X 


Q 


X-X-X 


Q-J-io-X 


X 


lO 



Do not lead a high card to finesse it unless you hold 
its equal in the other hand. 

Sometimes a lead of a low card must be followed by 
the play of a low card, even when you hold in third 
hand the best card, in order to provide re-entry for a 
suit which you cannot depend on clearing with the 
number of winning cards it holds. Say that dummy 

232 



has no card capable of winning a trick except in a suit 
of seven to the ace, wherein you hold three to the jack, 
with only the king, queen, and one small card against 
you. No matter how the cards lie, you must lose at 
least one trick, consequently it will be best to lead a 
small card and play a small card from dummy, regard- 
less of what second hand plays. The second time you 
are able to lead the suit the jack must be led. If the 
suit clears this round, go up with the ace; otherwise 
the ace must be reserved for the third round. Similar 
tactics would be necessary with 5 cards, including an 
honor, out against dimimy's suit of 5 or 6 cards to A-K. 
Always remember to leave re-entry in the hand where 
the long suit lies. If necessary, extreme measures 
must be adopted to put it there. Take a case where 
dummy has an established suit which has taken your 
last card of that suit to set up. He holds in addition 
Q-X of an unopened suit of which you hold only 
A-K. The only thing to do is to lead your ace, try 
to discard your king, and trust that your adversaries 
will be forced to lead that suit of which they jointly 
hold 9 cards. Holding K-Q-X in your own hand, 
with J-X-X-X in dummy, or even J-X-X, by lead- 
ing out the king and queen you will usually be able 
to force out the ace and make a re-entry card of the 
jack. With A-K-Q-5 in your own hand and 6-4-3-2 
in dummy's, you can probably make a re-entry card of 
his 6 by leading out the 3 honors to clear the suit. 
. The rule to look out for re-entry is necessitated by 
the need of establishing a long suit as soon as possible, 
to lead out and break up opposing strength through 
discards, also to enable leads to be made through 

233 



strength. To provide re-entry and not to block him- 
self the declarer must carefully count the cards of his 
long suit as they fall, unblocking, overtaking, and 
ducking as necessity may require. 

Forcing, whether in the form of making an adversary 
ruff your long suit at trumps or in the form of making 
him discard from his long suit at no trumps, is an 
effective method of attacking a powerfid adversary. 

Take all possible advantage of your adversaries' 
mannerisms, and of their peculiarities of play, to locate 
cards. Some adversaries show by their hesitation in 
deciding what to play that they hold a certain card. 
While you would have no right to take the slightest 
advantage of disclosures made by your partner, you 
have every right to make use of those of adversaries, 
since the etiquette of the game is sternly against them. 

Leading a suit which of all others you least desire 
led will sometimes bluff an adversary and prevent his 
returning the suit if its strength happens to be evenly 
divided between the defenders. 

Most players cannot resist covering a high card, 
consequently lead high to pull out high stops to yotir 
suit. With only 3 cards against you, including ace 
and king, it is possible that the lead of your queen 
will cause both the higher honors to fall at once, if 
fourth hand has only a singleton honor. 

Do your thinking (if necessary, after the opening 
lead) when adversaries lead up to your strength. When 
you do not want to dicloses anything you hold in a weak 
suit, play with your ordinary appearance of confidence. 
It is true that a quick movement in playing often pro- 
vokes a hasty play in return, sometimes to your ad- 

234 



vantage, but such purposely deceptive actions closely 
approach trickery. Try to maintain the same con- 
fident air whether or not you feel so, and always pla^?" 
your cards in one style. Mannerisms should neither be 
allowed to deceive opponents nor to enlighten a partner. 

With a weak hand you are more apt to make high 
cards good when the other side leads. The more suits 
they open up at no trumps the better it will be for you. 
If they will assist you in clearing a suit it is to your 
advantage. There are occasions when it is so desirable 
to have a special suit led by a certain player that it 
pays to lead out the last losing card of another suit, if 
you know that he holds its last winning card, in the hope 
that he will open up that special suit for you. This 
may happen when you hold only short tenace suits, 
and need to make both cards of a tenace good to win 
your contract. You will naturally have to lose the last 
losing card referred to anyway. 

At the end of the game you may have to lead when 
you hold cards like 10-8 clubs and 6-3 hearts and an 
adversary holds 9-7-6 clubs and 10 hearts, while his 
partner and the dtimmy hold only spades and dia- 
monds. If you lead a club you will win only i trick, 
while he will win 3 ; but if you lead a heart he will win 
only with his 10 hearts while you must win three tricks. 
This shows the utility of knowing just what is out 
against you, where it lies, and thinking carefully before 
you play the few last cards. 

Desiring the other side to lead trumps, you can 
usually accomplish this by a lead from dummy's short 
suit, if he shows only a few small trumps, as if you 
intend to start ruffing. 

23s 



With two winning cards of a suit in one hand and a 
third in the other hand, the balance of the hand will 
be better preserved by winning from the hand holding 
the two high cards, except in a case where you want both 
winning cards in the weak hand for re-entry purposes. 

With a single winning card in each hand, win from 
the hand less in need of re-entry cards. If there is no 
choice, win from the exposed hand to lead each adver- 
sary to believe that his partner holds the high card 
which is concealed in your own hand. 

False-carding by the declarer, if well conceived, often 
misleads an adversary into leading a suit desired, or 
prevents his playing a winning card under the im- 
pression that his partner can win a trick at fourth hand. 
For example of the last: You hold A-K-X of a suit, 
while dummy has J-X-X. If you lead the ace, and 
then a small one up to the jack, it may happen that 
eldest hand with the guarded queen will believe that 
pone has the king, and will permit you to steal a trick 
with the jack. It is senseless to false-card in cases 
where nothing is to be gained, particularly so to hold 
up a lowest card at no trumps. Habitually leading 
from the bottom of a sequence or playing its top card 
soon becomes known to all with whom you play ; thus, 
the utility of a very usefiil bit of false-carding is gone. 
Vary the deception by sometimes leading or playing 
the middle card of a sequence; when nothing can pos- 
sibly be gained by the deception, play the cards of a 
sequence as if you were a side player. 

No useful purpose comes from false-carding dummy's 
cards, except in rare cases where they are in sequence 
with your own. 

236 



On a fourth-best lead the pone knows whether de- 
clarer can beat the card led; so in a case where you 
cannot beat it do not play low out of dummy and ex- 
pect the pone to go unnecessarily high. 

Every text-book tells you that on a queen lead you 
should win with the king, instead of false-carding with 
the ace. The lead cannot poSvSibly be from K-Q 
and others, but it might be from A-Q-J. The leader 
will know that you hold the ace, but his partner can- 
not tell who holds it. In addition to this repeatedly 
cited case there are other equally good opportunities 
to puzzle an adversary on an honor led by his 
partner. 

If jack is led at no trumps, it may be from A-K-J 
or A-J-io or J-io. Holding ace, king, and queen in 
his own hand, the declarer can win with the queen 
instead of false-carding. This will not tell pone that 
the ace and king are also held, and he is liable to return 
the lead at the first opportunity, under the impression 
that eldest hand has either the ace or both ace and 
king. If queen lies in dimimy when declarer holds 
both ace and king, the same impression will be given 
pone by winning with the queen from dummy. 

If declarer holds A-K-J in his own hand when the 
lo is led and overplayed by pone's queen, if he plays 
the king pone may think his partner is leading from 
seven to A-io, with re-entry, if the declarer has 
enough cards to deceive the pone. With a short suit 
he can false-card by winning with the ace instead of 
the king. In the latter case eldest hand is apt to be- 
lieve that pone holds the king with jack in the de- 
clarer's hand; while the pone will think the lead came 

237 



from K-J-io; consequently, both adversaries will be 
deceived by the false card played. 

At no trumps the declarer can false-card with the 
ace from A-K-J to win over queen played by pone 
on the lead of his partner's lo, to deceive the adver- 
saries just as above. By false-carding with the ace 
on pone's third-hand play of the queen, with lo and 
jack anywhere, he can lead eldest hand to believe that 
pone holds the king. 

To false-card with an honor quickly and to deceive 
an adversary, the declarer must have all the leads 
fixed clearly in mind. False-carding with lower cards 
is useless against ordinary players, but often very de- 
ceptive to good players. 



CARD PROBABILITIES 

From the ordinary pack of 52 playing-cards 635,013,- 
559,600 hands can be dealt, no two alike. These con- 
stitute a complete series of hands. After the cards 
have been dealt the 39 cards outside your own hand 
may lie in 8,122,425,444 different ways. The mathe- 
matical probabilities of these card distributions form the 
basis of a scientific system of bid and play. All rules 
given in this work are based upon the elaborate calcu- 
lations necessary to determine the bid or play most 
likely to prove best. In addition to the facts previously 
given, the following tables contain information of in- 
terest and value to players who want to avail them- 
selves of all possible chances to improve their game. 

In a complete series of hands there will be dealt in 
each suit 83,935,236,906 times cards giving a genuine 
attacking hand in that suit, and 27,289,617,676 addi- 
tional times in each suit a choice will lie between 
equally good declarations in that suit and no trumps. 
Many hands also give a choice between equally good 
trump calls in two or more suits. In the following 
table hands of the latter type are listed only under 
the higher call, as royals will naturally be preferred 
to a lower call; preference given to hearts over dia- 
monds or clubs, and to diamonds over clubs. To 

239 



avoid the use of the huge figures given above the 
chances to hold an attacking hand of a given type are 
reduced to the chances averaging to occur in 10,000 
hands and in 100 hands. 



Chances in 10,000 to hold attacking hands. 


Chances in 100. 


No trumps, only 


1,458 


15 


No trumps, or royals 


430 


4 


No trumps, or hearts 


404 


4 


No trumps, or diamonds 


378 


4 


No trumps, or clubs 


353 


3 


(Total chances to bid no trumps 






30 in 100) 






Royals 


1,322 


13 


Hearts 


1,194 


12 


Diamonds 


1,067 


II 


Clubs 


940 


9 


No attacking hand 


2,454 


25 



Total 10,000 100 

A glance at the above table shows that an opening 
informatory bid of 2-Spades, for example, is proper 
because each of the other three players holds 75 in 100 
chances to bid higher. If i-Heart is bid there are not 
only 43 in 100 chances that each other player can bid 
a higher call, but there are also 6 in 100 chances that 
each of the other three players has a hand calling for 
a bid of 2-Diamonds or 2-Clubs. As each of the 
other players holds 49 in 100 chances to hold an at- 
tacking hand worth a higher opening bid than i-Heart, 
it follows that if all players bid their hands a bid of 
I-Heart stands only about i in 20 legitimate chances 
of holding. A table of ultra-conservative or of reck- 
less players would alter these chances materially. 

240 



The next table shows why you can consider the ace 
and king of a side suit as each probably worth a trick, 
if you hold less than six in the suit, but that only the 
ace is probably worth a trick if over six are held. The 
table takes into consideration cases where both dummy 
and an opponent can ruff by presuming that the 
dtimmy can either outruff the pone or else will ruff 
so high as to make pone's winning so expensive as to 
coimt to the declarer's credit later on. 

Chances in loo that opponents will ruff your leads. 
Number in 
your suit 

I 

2 

3 
4 
5 
6 

7 

The following table shows the chances in loo that 
the declarer has to win from his adversaries a given 
number of trump tricks merely on length of suit when 
holding the lowest possible trump sequence— 2-3-4-5-6, 
etc. 

Number held Will win Times in 100 

6 trumps 3 tricks 55 

7 trumps 4 or more tricks 75 

8 trumps 5 or more tricks 90 

9 trumps 7 tricks 7© 



THE END 



1st Round 


2d Round 


3d Ro\ 


'A 


— 


— 


I 


9 


— 


2 


14 


50 


3 


22 


63 


5 


32 


79 


9 


45 


99 


14 


60 


100 



MAR 14 1913 



